Chapter 3: Sketchy Hospitals

October 18, 2009

In the Timeless Palace:

Daikaku Kokujōji, often known as the Gold King, looked up from his PDA. He snapped his fingers in the air, summoning an Usagi.

The Usagi bowed before his King and waited for his orders. Their uniforms consist of a black yukata with gold markings trimmed with red and black trousers. The yukata is tied by a white strap with a white puff on the back, resembling a rabbit's tail. The Usagi's gold mask covered half of his face, but Daikaku knows every member's identity.

The Gold King ordered his right hand man/Usagi: "Send 3 Usagis to Nanakamado Chemotherapy Research Center, I want you to take Kōshi Mizuchi in for questioning. Alive. Also, tell Hana that she's allowed to do what she wants, just this once. You are dismissed." The Usagi bowed and without another word, exited the room.

(Line break)

Train:

"We catch a train to the hospital? I didn't know it's that far away." I look around at the group of red clansmen. The train car we were in was empty except for us.

The normal pedestrians on the train knew who they were or sensed that it was in their best interest to stay away from these dangerous looking men. I saw a few give me some pitiful looks from the other train cars as if I was some helpless girl.

Irritated, I pouted and pulled down my hood to reveal my face and hair.

"What pretty hair! Can I braid it?" Tatara exclaimed, running his hands on a few strands of my medium-length pink hair. *Snort*.

"Wahhh!" Tatara backed up in surprise at the snorting noise.

I bent over in laughter, "Daijoubu, Daijoubu! It's Pepper saying she's happy. I think you accidentally pet her. Here, if you want, you can hold her." I clicked my tongue and held out my arms. Pepper lazily looked at me, yawned, and snuggled back into my hair. My face heated up in embarrassment. "Ahhh, I guess she's tired? She's had a long day, sorry about her behavior. She really likes to sleep a lot."

Rikio and Shouhei laugh at Tatara, teasing him about getting a girlfriend. If possible, my face turns a darker shade of red. I face away from the them, noticing Misaki in the corner, obviously avoiding me. I approach him quietly, and then when I'm right behind him, I ask, "Hey, are you okay? You're in the corner here all alone."

"AHHHHH!" Misaki jumps away from me, further into the corner (which I didn't even know was possible), and tripping over himself.

I couldn't hold it in anymore, I laughed at him. Then I stopped laughing as I noticed the guys were staring at me, again. "Wh-what? Do I have something on my face?"

"No, it's just you have a pretty laugh Hana-san. We haven't heard you laugh yet." Tatara smiles as the boys back him up. Ah the tomato face has returned. I put my hood back on.

"No, no, don't be embarrassed Kugawa-san." Shohei reassured.

"Wait, I just realized, you all know my name, but I don't know any of yours…" They all sweat-dropped.

"Whoops, I can't believe we forgot to introduce ourselves! We all felt so at each with you, it seemed as if we've known each other for a while. I'm Tatara Totsuka by the way!" Tatara exclaimed. Wow, he really hit the hammer on the mark, because it's true. I do know about some of them, their general pasts, and well I guess their futures in this case. Taking on his typical role of breaking the ice, Tatara continued to introduce everyone else, "The boy in the corner there who can't talk to girls is Misaki Yata."

"Oi!" Misaki held up his fist threateningly, but Tatara just laughed it off.

"And the one smoking there is Izumo Kusanagi, he owns the bar." Said bar owner just placed tinted sunglasses on his eyes and blew smoke out of his mouth. "Next, we have Rikio Kamamoto and Shohei Akagi, they're really nice kids. They just love messing around a bit too much."

Tatara and Hana watched as Rikio and Shohei teased Misaki and Misaki knuckled them both in the head. Rikio Kamamoto has dyed blonde hair and a small goatee. He's on the heavier side and today was wearing a white hoodie zipped up to the top, with metal chain necklaces hanging down to his chest. Shohei Akagi had a black cap on his head, that had the letters "HMR" obviously standing for HOMRA, with a fire background. He had on a white tee and a casual red sweater on top.

Tatara inclined his head towards where Mikoto was lounging on a train seat. "That's our King, Mikoto Suoh. He's the best King we could've asked for. Mikoto and Izumo were actually once students of Honami-san."

"Hm, I know." I hummed my agreement. I took that moment to study Mikoto, he looked exactly like in the anime, but even more handsome if possible. I guess it's the fact that he's 3D instead of 2D now. His red hair was slicked back and he had a cigarette casually placed in his mouth. Along with his typical white shirt and black jeans, he had a chain hanging off of the left side of his belt loops. But something was missing… How odd. He didn't have his signature star pendant necklace hanging around his neck. I wonder if that happens later on in the anime. "Honami-san mentioned those two. She is really proud of them."

"Kugawa-san?"

"Ah, Kusanagi-san, just call me Hana."

"Okay, Hana, how d'ya not know where the hospital is, but know tha' Anna is in danger?" Izumo asked neutrally. It seemed as if he was just probing for information, not looking to upset me or accuse me of anything. He was referencing my earlier comment, because I didn't know we needed to take a train in order to get to the hospital.

I froze a bit, trying to gather my thoughts. "It's hard to explain, and honestly I'm not sure if you guys would believe me."

The red clan looked at each other, and Izumo sighed, "Try us. We've got ya. It's not as unbelievable as ya think it is." They knew about Anna who could 'feel things," and suspected she was a strain this entire time. But there wasn't anything they could do until Hana came bursting into their bar, asking for help.

Ah. So they think I'm a strain who knows about the clans, but is scared of revealing herself. Well they're in for a surprise.

"Well, it's a story that needs to be explained another time. I can't say it here in public. It wouldn't be safe. But I'm speaking the truth. Right now, Anna needs our help." Hana glanced around. Even though there weren't any people in the train car, who knows how advanced their technology is. There are probably cameras and microphones in each car to monitor the safety of pedestrians. I noticed our train rolling up to the train station which had the hospital labeled on there. "Hey guys, I think this is our stop."

Izumo sighs and looks at Hana, "Okay, but our conversation isn't over yet."

We approach the hospital and from what I recall in the manga. It's the building off to the side that doesn't appear as a part of the hospital. It appears as if it's on a neighboring land. But I know better. There are secret passageways so Mizuchi can have full access to the patients. I check my phone, that conveniently had a map of the building uploaded into it. Again, more cheats? If Dresden is screwing with the plot then I'm gonna, oh. Wait, I'm screwing with the plot just by being here. But I can't let Anna suffer any longer. I don't give a fuck about the plot if I can save Anna and Tatara. Looking at the digital map on my phone, I point towards the unassuming building. "Anna's in there. How are we going to get in though? Eh, chotto matte guys, wait for me!" Hana struggles to catch up as the clan continues to follow their King who made a beeline for the building as soon as Hana pointed it out. "How are we going to get in this way?"

"Just watch. We are the RED Clan." Yata explained.

"No Blood. No Bone. No Ash." The clan gave a quick battle cry before burning through the thick fence and right into the building. Ah. I forgot about that. Okay, I guess this means I can test out my powers? To see if there's more than just healing. I was expecting to have some time to cultivate them and figure out exactly what I can do, but I guess this pressure is the best way to test them out. If things go wrong, I have my own physical abilities that I can rely on and my medical knowledge.

"We are not being very inconspicuous guys!" I chastised as I pointed towards where we needed to go next. "The research area is further in, towards the basement. We need to go down this staircase." Before they headed down, I took a look at the side of the building that was melted off. I decided to try my powers out then. The clan stopped and looked at me as I stood by the wall.

"Hana-chan, what's taking you so long?" Tatara called out.

I concentrated on the wall, channeling my inner Doctor Strange. I visualized the structure of the wall and its previous condition. I held both hands out and turned my right hand counter-clockwise to reverse the time space of the area. The melted wall returned back to its normal shape. Okay. Damn. That was too easy. How suspicious. What sort of powers did I get from Dresden! Time-reversal and healing so far. This doesn't sound good. This is starting to sound like one of those fanfics with OP OC characters. Eh, but it's me. It's not like I'm going to go on a killing spree and kill all those evil bastards who thought about hurting my friends. Oh wait. That sounds just like me. Ehhhh I'm sure it'll all turn out okay, I wouldn't actually KILL them. Just beat them to a pulp.

The boys gaped at me as Mikoto nodded his head once in approval. I brushed myself off and walked ahead, slightly blushing at Mikoto's rare sign of acknowledgement. As they followed my complicated directions, we pushed further and further into the hospital. Why is no one stopping us, we didn't even use the front door. Their security is so lax what the heck! At that moment, the group came across a large locked door that prevented them from moving more into the building.

Mikoto's aura spiked as he was ready to walk through the door. As Mikoto melted the door, Izumo reminded Hana and Tatara why they brought them along. "Anna's grown somewhat attached t'ya, so look after her when we rescue her. Also Hana's a girl, unlike the rest of us brutes so she's more likely to trust the both of ya than any of us."

I took that moment to try and reach out to Anna. Since I'm connected with all of the kings and technically Anna has the power to be the Red King in the future, let's see how this goes.

(Line Break)

Inside the Research Center:

"Have you learned your lesson?" Mizuchi sneered at Anna. "You're a dangerous person. Your current existence brings harm to those around you."

Anna listened quietly to Mizuchi's words. When her parents died, she closed off her heart, erased her emotions, and became something like a doll. But despite doing this, HOMRA opened up her heart. She went and had fun with them, letting them in. Anna closed her eyes.

"Tell me one thing. Did you kill mom and dad?" Even though the room was monochrome to her, the truth was evident.

"Of course not." What a blatant lie. His tone was so thinly veiled, it didn't even attempt to hide the truth beneath it. "You have the caliber of a king. If you were to lean on a normal person, you'd do nothing but make them unhappy."

"I won't leave here anymore. So don't do anything to Honami-san."

ANNA! Anna's eyes widened at the unfamiliar voice in her head. Hang in there! We're coming to save you. I promise, I promise I'll always save you, no matter what! Please, don't listen to him. We care about you. Just hang on, we're almost there! Anna glanced at Mizuchi under her white eyelashes, but Mizuchi had taken on a compassionate expression. It seemed as if he didn't hear this strange voice.

"You don't need to have such a tragic determination. If you become able to control your powers, and if you manage to reach the Dresden Slate - if you manage to become a king, there will no longer be any need for you to be locked up here. You should go out under the sun and rule openly." Mizuchi reached up to stroke Anna's hair.

That fucking bastard. If he touches you again I AM CUTTING OFF THAT FUCKING HAND.

"Stop." Anna said in a quiet voice. She walked towards the slate. "I should just become the blue king, right."

(Line Break)

"THAT FUCKING BASTARD, HE TOUCHED ANNA'S HAIR. HE'S FORCING HER TO BECOME THE BLUE KING. I'M GOING TO MURDER HIM. GUYS, HURRY UP." Hana bolted faster than the other guys, even faster than Misaki on his skateboard. Mikoto had already burned through the door, and they approached the part of the building Anna was hidden in.

The red clan increased their speed at Hana's exclamation.

(Line Break)

Center's security room:

From the Center's security room, Hayato Minato and Akito Minato, two blue clansmen, faced their replacement leader, Gen Shiotsu. This whole fiasco started because the blue clan did not have an acting king. That was why Mizuchi was forcing Anna through inhumane experiments. It was in order to create a new Blue King. Anna wasn't the only one though. He performed those inhumane experiments on other strains too.

"Are those guys going to come to take that little girl back? I wonder why Mizuchi-san is so focused on that girl?" Hayato and Akito asked Gen in turns. They weren't aware of Mizuchi's plans to turn Anna into the Blue King, and they didn't know for that sake she was being forced through those god-awful experiments. Even if they knew, they wouldn't have done anything to help her. If they could gain a Blue King and their position could improve, they would probably be glad. In addition, the twins didn't comprehend how dangerous their current situation was. They're like little children who were given a change to use their powers under the name of "justice."

Gen, the Blue Clan's Commander during the absence of a King, mulled over these bitter thoughts. He didn't have the willpower to answer their questions or explain the danger to them. "They've already infiltrated part of the building. Gather our people and set a guard, don't let them get any further! Be prepared for a fight, and shut out the civilians."

"Understood." The twins answered in unison.

(Line break break breakity break)

Back with the red clan:

As they entered the second part of the building, there were blue clansmen lined up, creating a barrier and preventing them from entering the other half. "Red King and his clansmen, this is your final warning." Said one of the twins, Hayato.

"Even if you are a king, it won't be forgiven for you to enter another clan's territory without prior procedures. We request your departure." Said the other twin, Akito.

In response to the twin's blunt warning, Mikoto glared at them, then opened his mouth, annoyed: "We're here to pick up one of us."

"Are you talking about Anna Kushina?" Said Hayato. Mikoto didn't answer, but the silence alone was enough of an answer. Hayato continued, "She is a strain who couldn't control her own powers and harmed many people. This center has responsibility to take care of her and educate her. You said she is one of yours, but Anna Kushina should not be a red clansman. It is not your place to do anything."

"Actually, they do have permission to enter." Everyone in the room tensed as three Usagis entered. No one noticed him and the two lackeys behind him enter the room. "Hana-sama has gained the permission from Kokujōji-sama, the Gold King, to enter the building, and ah-em, 'do what she wants, just this once.'"

"Alright guys, let's get a move on! We don't have time to be wasting dawlding about. Took you Usagis long enough to arrive. Give your King my sincere thanks and tell him that I'll come by to visit soon enough." Hana walked past the Minato twins and the blue's formation.

The corners of Mikoto's mouth twitched upwards slightly, Izumo shook his head, and Tatara gave a shrug. Misaki followed in bewilderment and the other two red clansmen followed their King.

The blues stood off to the side, unsure of how to proceed from there. One Usagi was left to keep an eye on the blue clan, while the other 2 Usagis, including the one who made the announcement, followed us.

I hope we can avoid some of the torture Anna. We're almost there. Hang on, please.

Sorry! *Hides face in embarrassment* Some parts of this story were a bit of fluff and cringe, but I wanted to add more to the story than just this and that happened. I don't know if anyone noticed, but apparently Fushimi is supposed to still be in the Red Clan at this point. I decided to not have him here, because I didn't want to deal with his drama with Misaki. Sorry guys, just kiss and make up, don't complicate my story further because there's a lot more happening in the future as is. Also the plot changed a bit. Butttt it still follows the general timeline I believe! Ugh, please don't judge my fanfic on this chapter, it'll get better, I promise. Actually the next chapter…. Hmmmm I didn't particularly enjoy writing it, because for those who read K: Side: Red, you know what happened to poor Anna. Don't worry Anna, everything will turn out fine, just like what Tatara says right?

Please reviewwww. Do you guys think I put in too much dialogue? Do I need more? Should I not go into so much detail? Or ya'know. You can just favorite and follow. That makes me happy too.

Shout out to Scarlett Uzumaki-Chan for the favorite and follow!