Chapter 3.- Plaguing thoughts

If he had to be completely honest, Mikey knew he was being kinda rude as he let his friends' voices go in one ear and out the other without any of the words spoken registering at all, but they knew him well enough, and Draken would tell him if anyone said anything important. There was a reason the guy was his best friend and right-hand man; he was used to Manjiro's wandering thoughts. It might be a little annoying after the two of them had been late to a meeting only three days ago, but the blond really couldn't help it, so he allowed his gaze to get lost in the cracks in the ceiling, mindlessly looking for a pattern. Besides, things had been relatively peaceful lately (boring, really), so he didn't need to be hyper-focused on the meeting. Not when this was just an excuse for them to hang out. If only his mind could stop circling back to the blue-eyed girl they met three days ago.

Then again, it wasn't like he was particularly interested in not thinking about her. Because truth be told, he was…intrigued.

His ability to judge others had always been quite decent. Sure, it wasn't perfect, but Mikey didn't tend to be far off even when he was wrong, and yet, Higurashi Kagome took him entirely off guard.

From a distance, the girl didn't look any different from so many other chicks being harassed by random assholes. The blond would've pegged her for a perfectly nice, straight-A student who had the misfortune of being out a little too late in the wrong end of her neighborhood. She was short and thin and didn't look like she'd be able to make it through a fight without screeching in terror. When the girl actually talked, she remained polite and soft-spoken, and when that was added to the light blue dress she wore, most people wouldn't hesitate to call her delicate. It made her admission to living in a shrine a completely believable claim. But she didn't run off when he and Draken took over the fight. He'd considered that perhaps his first assumption about her fighting skills may have been wrong. After all, while his sister didn't like getting into fights, she had some decent martial arts training without looking the part of a brawler. That particular option went out the window when the girl confirmed she couldn't throw a punch to save her life. Perhaps a sheltered, naïve princess would think herself safe despite being outnumbered and surrounded, but he'd seen the look in her eyes before the two delinquents jumped in. Sure, there was a lack of fear, but there was no unfounded arrogance either. She knew those assholes were going to go at her and a fight would break out, but still, the girl remained unafraid.

Her name didn't suit her.

The rhyme used in the childish game her name came from had been going on and on within his mind nonstop, and the more he thought about the lyrics, the more convinced he became that Kagome wasn't the sort of person that would ever fit such a name. Because the girl was no bird, and he was willing to bet she'd either destroy or find a way to escape any cage that could try to trap her. So he went ahead and picked a new name for her since he refused to use the other one, even in his thoughts. The delinquent was curious. A part of him couldn't help but wonder what Me-chan would've done if she'd remained alone. Despite the light-heartedness of her answers, there was no laughter in her eyes. Mikey was curious and wanted to know more because the girl had come up with some of the weirdest stories he'd ever heard.

Coming up with an excuse to go to the shrine couldn't be that difficult, could it? Even if it was, he could always claim to be there for the cup of tea the priestess offered them when they left.

'..key, are you listening?" Mitsuya asked, one brow raised; he already knew the answer.

"Geez, what is even going on in that head of yours?" Ken-chin rolled his eyes.

"Hmm…I was thinking..." He trailed off. He wasn't sure he wanted to bring up the girl herself. "Is a kappa's hand actually a hand? Or is it a paw? Is there any difference between a hand and a foot with animals?"

"Huh?"

"The hell is that supposed to mean?"

Unapologetically, Mikey laughed at the confusion painted on Baji's face, always the most expressive out of all his captains, and the exasperation on Ken-chin's. To be fair, the only one with any idea of what he was talking about was Draken.

"It seems like some people think they can just come in and do whatever they want in our territory." Not a lie, even if that wasn't exactly what he'd been thinking about. But it should be enough for an answer. "They're the sort of trash who think it's okay to harass girls all over."

The more Toman grew, the more difficult it became to keep tabs on all their members. In the first place, delinquent gangs weren't filled by good, well-behaved people, so it wasn't surprising to hear some of the newer members acted without any sort of honor. For the most part, he was a lax leader, more interested in hanging out with his friends than keeping watch over the gang. Even so, there were some lines not just Mikey but every single one of his captains and vice captains weren't willing to cross. Anyone who ignored them, no matter how green, would be severely punished before being kicked out, and if those people were from other groups, then they would be pummeled to the ground. Harassing and assaulting women was definitely one of those lines. The only reason he'd waited three days before making this private announcement was that the location where they met Me-chan was very close to the border of their territory; the Higurashi shrine itself was on the blurry edge created by neighborhoods that were too nice for any bike gang to be able to move freely. So before all but declaring war, he'd waited to see how many foreign gangsters were testing Toman's patience. And just before the meeting started, Draken gave him a report on that specific, both locations were still in Toman territory.

Going by the darkened frowns on his friends' faces, they felt the same way about this mess as he did. Honestly, even if he hadn't found Me-chan so interesting, he would've still called for a confrontation. Well, he wasn't about to complain about getting such an unexpected bonus.

"Now, that sounds like we're gonna get a bit of fun." This time, it was a grin splitting Baji's face.

"Which border?" Pah asked, slight confusion still in his voice.

"South-east."

"South, huh…" Mitsuya trailed off, thinking about Ken-chin's answer. "That means they're probably from the Minami gang."

"Let everyone know," Mikey said with a lazy smile.

Back then, the blond didn't really care enough to analyze the assholes accosting Me-chan; now that he thought about it, however, they looked older. And the name Mitsuya mentioned was attached to all sorts of nasty rumors about how much trouble they caused to regular people and how often they accosted girls within the heart of their territory. No matter how anyone looked at it, these were the sort of idiots that ruined delinquents' reputations. Usually, a patch of nice neighborhoods served as deterrents for gang activities since residents were more likely to call the police, and the cops showed up faster. In general, it was just a nuisance to stick around those areas. If Minami was beginning to risk it, then so would Toman.

"Full meeting?"

"Yep," the short blond nodded, it would be easier. "Let's make it this Sunday."

"Well, guess we can't let others try to push our borders." Mitsuya's voice still had a bit of an edge.

"We should spread out in the meantime." As usual, Ken-chin took over the details. "Remember not to bother the residents."

"Yeah, yeah," Pah rolled his eyes. "What matters is if we find those guys, we can beat them up, yeah?

"Just those guys."

Dark eyes glanced at the somewhat frustrated snort from his second in command. Out of all of them, the taller blond was the one who cared about not inconveniencing others the most. At times to extremes Mikey still struggled to fully understand. Whenever big conflicts started, it was Draken who did his best to ensure things went as smoothly as possible. He had no doubt that was part of why his best friend attempted to distract him anytime the shorter blond mentioned anything related to the odd girl or the Higurashi shrine in general. That Ken-chin was likely thinking about what was best for everyone was the only reason he wasn't upset at the other boy's attempts. Partly because his friend was right. Regardless of the contradictions in Me-chan's actions, she still lived in a different world, and even just hanging around her might be enough to pull her into their troubles, and that should be all that was needed for them to keep their distance. The girl's apparent lack of fear at potential risks notwithstanding. But Mikey was never good at denying himself, in more ways than one, restraining his urges was the only challenge he frequently lost. Why should he stay away from the shrine when the girl clearly wasn't bothered by the big difference in their backgrounds? Why would he pretend they never met when he could be exploring the odd feeling that grew stronger the longer he'd walked by her side, laughing as she wove absurd tales for them?

Besides, meeting with her once more might be for the better anyway.

With their increased rounds, far more Toman members would be wandering on the blurry borders of their territories; it wouldn't be surprising for them to come across the girl, and depending on how things went, shit could quickly hit the fan. His guys didn't exactly have the best tempers, and Me-chan admitted to jumping in to help a stranger escape from the thugs they beat up. Without a warning, Mikey wouldn't be surprised if the girl tried to confront some of their own people. Flighty as it was, the idea of keeping quiet to watch what would happen poked at him for a second before he swatted it away. Sure, the blond wanted to see that gaze of hers once more, but it would be worse to piss her off and have her avoid him. It wouldn't matter much anyway; if he kept pulling her towards Toman, he'd get another chance to see it. That look that would never fit a frail, innocent, little bird.

Yes, he'd have to warn the girl, and since they forgot to get her number, his only choice was to go to the shrine itself.

"We'll have more people on the streets by tomorrow," Mitsuya said, nodding.

"No one messes with Toman!"

Closing his eyes, the blond leader let his captains discuss their new plan of action, letting his thoughts wander once more. If those thugs really started to encroach in their territory, he should probably warn Emma to be careful when she was out on her own. His sister had trained with their grandfather since they were little, so she wasn't exactly weak, and the younger girl never stayed that far off from their territory, but better safe than sorry since he couldn't say she was particularly strong either. Fighting off one or two delinquents was well within her capabilities, but if those cowards decided to gang up on her, things could end up differently. Until they got a good look at the other group, he'd rather not risk Emma's safety. At the end of the day, as her big brother, her safety fell on him. Ken-chin probably wouldn't mind too much if he asked him to hang around the dojo more often.

Now that he thought about it, maybe he should introduce the two girls. His sister didn't complain about it; she got along with Toman's division captains just fine, but Mikey knew she didn't have that many girlfriends. And it was partly because of the reputation he'd earned. Despite how little his sister claimed to dislike fighting, she was very picky and wouldn't hesitate to snub someone who badmouthed him or his friends. Age wasn't something they talked about, but Me-chan was probably around his age, which meant Emma would be one or two years younger; it shouldn't be too big a gap to bridge. Meaning that shouldn't be an issue with Me-chan. As for the priestess' willingness to interact with his sister, he really doubted he'd have trouble convincing her. She'd joked around him and Ken-chin as if it was the most natural thing in the world; hanging out with a younger girl couldn't be that much of a stretch. Mind still whirling about how to approach this, Mikey waved as his friends left the empty lot after agreeing on a vague plan to follow, leaving only his best friend still sitting on a random crate.

"Really?" Ken-chin's voice pierced through his thoughts. "A kappa's hand?"

"Aren't you curious about it?" If they had that on their shrine, then what else can be there?" That's not what he was asked, but he didn't care.

"That wasn't a tiny shrine over there, so they likely have some legit stiff, you know…pricey stuff." There was a very obvious warning there. "Playing around in a place like that wouldn't be a smart move."

"It should be fine as long as Me-chan's around."

"You planning on swinging by her place?" There was disbelief tinting his question.

"Why not?"

His short answer earned him a tired sigh, and the short blond let out a laugh at his friend's tired expression. He knew exactly where this was going, and while he didn't mind Ken-chin acting on his sense of right and wrong, it didn't mean he'd follow his advice. Really, Mikey wasn't about to make this any easier.

"We shouldn't drag her into our problems." There was no subtlety this time. "Kagome-chan doesn't live in our world."'

"Doesn't she?"

"She said it herself," Draken sighed. "She isn't involved in fighting."

"Was that what Me-chan said?" His voice was perhaps a little mocking, and he could see the confusion on the other boy's face.

"Huh?"

The priestess only said she wasn't good at fighting, not that she'd never been in a brawl. Two very different things. Nothing from the bits of information about her family shared during their walk hinted at her having an older sibling who could've fought her battles in her place, letting her watch safely from the sidelines. Which didn't mean a friend of hers couldn't have taken the role of a fighter, but it still didn't fit right with her attitude. And while the blond wasn't sure how his deduction could mesh well with her clear family social standing, he'd bet anything the girl had, at the very least, seen a handful of fights up close.

"Look, even if Kagome-chan has been in a brawl or two, it doesn't mean we should bother her." The braided blond shook his head.

"Me-chan is quite interesting, isn't she?"

"Inter…" the other boy sputtered. "Interesting or not doesn't really matter, Mikey. We're not just any low-ranking members either. Other gangs might target her to get at you."

"Hmm, pretty sure we could deal with them. Or are you straight up telling me not to reach out?" He couldn't quite keep the hard edge off his voice.

"Once you get something into your head, trying to talk you out of it is…at least wait until we have a better idea of when and how we're clashing with Minami."

Mikey didn't even try to stifle his laughter.

Oh, he knew exactly what his friend was trying to pull off by delaying a new meeting with the girl. His interest was a fickle thing. It wasn't uncommon for him to get bored of something after a short period of time. Once or twice a handful of days was all he needed to grow bored of whatever he'd been into before. It made sense, in a way; before this, the blond only ever felt drawn to strong people. His best friends ending up as captains was neither a coincidence nor favoritism. It was just a pattern. And Me-chan didn't really fit in with the rest of the people who caught his attention. Hoping that by keeping them apart, the novelty would wear off and Mikey would forget the shrine and the odd priestess was a logical leap to make. In any other situation, the blond might've conceded the point and given up. At the very least, he would've given him the benefit of the doubt. But in this particular situation, he could already tell that wasn't how things would develop. For three days his thoughts kept going back to their encounter, and he wanted to know more about the feeling he got from her.

There was one more thing Draken was conveniently forgetting. After all, Shinichiro couldn't land a decent hit to save his life.

His brother never did learn how to win a fight but never thought twice about getting into a brawl to protect his friends. It was a different type of strength than the one he and his friends possessed, and he'd admired the hell out of that. Despite his weakness, his brother had still been strong. It was too early for him to know if what Me-chan showed was the same. In fact, he was almost confident that it wasn't quite the same. But it was definitely similar enough to catch his eye and he could tell his curiosity wouldn't fizzle out.

"Fine then," Mikey conceded with a sigh. "But don't blame me if she gets into a fight with one of our guys."

"No way, we told them not to cause trouble."

Again, the shorter blond laughed, ignoring the clear doubt on his friend's expression. "Come on, Emma's been pestering me about going to the movies, and I'm not getting bored alone."

Fingers crushed the blanket at his side, and all he could do was gaze into the darkness of his room's ceiling.

He could feel it build up again.

Those urges that whispered malice on the back of his mind, the few times he'd failed to control himself, things went out of hand, fast.

Violence wasn't scary to him. Mikey was good when it came to fighting; he was undefeated. The invincible Mikey. He started fights just as often as he ended them, knowing that, in many cases, others got legitimately hurt, but he always tried to hold himself to the morals Shinichiro kept to. He might not be the best-behaved kid ever, but he tried to be good. Which was why it bothered him that when, at times, he went overboard, Mikey genuinely couldn't feel guilty. Even when he could see how worried those around him were, nothing stirred within him despite the tears and fear his actions brought. So far, he'd always stopped before crossing a line there would be no coming back from... but that wasn't a rule set in stone. And the whispers in his head kept wondering if it would be that bad in the first place. Already, the blond lived doing only what he wanted to do. Giving in to those impulses surely couldn't be that different?

Having Ken-chin at his side was a good way to remind himself of the lines he shouldn't cross.

But these urges were slowly increasing in their frequency.

Today was supposed to be just a normal day; the afternoon was meant to be nothing but some stupid fun as he humored Emma and dragged Draken to watch one of those romantic movies she was fond of, and maybe play around for a bit after. Except a jerk had to ruin the day. Not even a delinquent, just a common asshole who couldn't take no for an answer and thought he could annoy his sister just because he and Draken had gone to the bathroom. Burning rage rose like bile, pushing his tout muscles to move. To grab the boy's collar and hit over and over and to keep going until his arm grew tired. Ken-chin was the first to move, though. He'd gone and scared the idiot off with a handful of menacing words coupled with an intimidating glare. And that was it. Conflict resolved without exchanging a single punch. No blood drawn. Such an easy solution that wouldn't upset Emma or ban them from the movie theater because he went and punched a random bastard who'd technically done nothing wrong. Being a general annoyance wasn't a crime, after all. And yet, that option didn't even cross his mind; all he wanted to do was to feed that violent impulse that lurked within him for as long as he could remember.

Quite honestly, he couldn't pinpoint exactly when this started.

All he knew was that dark urges reared their head, and keeping them under wraps was harder with every passing day. Eventually, he would lose control and do something that could never be undone. Except, the whispers that incited him to actively hurt others had quieted somewhat lately. That was partly why he'd been so surprised when those impulses suddenly crashed against his self-control today.

Three days ago.

The dark voice that tried to tempt him became a bit more muted three days ago when he met the odd priestess.

Demons, gods, and the like were nothing but fairy tales, children's stories that claimed magic could solve any problems via miracles, Mikey never truly cared too much for them. But if the black void within him could be thought of as some kind of curse eating away at his heart, then it made a weird sort of sense for it to have been pushed back after meeting the girl and escorting her back to her shrine. At first, he hadn't really noticed that anything had changed and attributed the small respite to be due to his thoughts being consumed by his curiosity. Since he was too busy thinking about something else, he'd been too distracted for those urges to keep pestering him. However, after today's little annoyance, he knew that wasn't the case. For whatever reason, it was her presence that soothed his urges, and in hindsight, maybe he'd unconsciously noticed it, and it was fueling at least part of his obsession with Me-chan. If he could get her to stay beside him, then maybe there was a chance her presence could help him keep calm. Like going to a priestess to ask for a blessing or an exorcism…then again…

Maybe it would be a failed exorcism; perhaps, instead of cleansing him, he'd be the one to taint her.

Ken-chin was right. He should stay away. Because if things went wrong, then Mikey would be essentially drowning her in the same void that kept trying to pull him under. Shinichiro always said girls should be treated with care and respect. Even if they were strong, there was nothing wrong with trying to protect them. His interest wouldn't fade in five days, it was as much a fact as the sky being blue, but at this stage, he could still force himself to keep his distance. It would suck, but he could do it. It would be the best for everyone. His brother had warned him about how dangerous addictions could become, and stupid as it was, considering, they'd met only once, this was how Mikey imagined it would feel. Going along with this could very much ruin her life. It wouldn't take long for him to get addicted.

Only problem was…he didn't want to keep his distance. Hell, he wasn't even sure how bothered he'd really be were he to drag her down with him.

Five days, he'd promised to stay away for at least five days, and then go to the shrine to give her a warning not to confront anyone, since Toman would take care of the current problem, and then…if she rejected him, the way girls like her were meant to, then he'd stay away. The ball would be on her court. If she reacted the same way she did two days ago, however, he'd stay. This was a blind bet he was making, not really knowing the odds. And if the outcome was what he wanted, then he'd keep pushing his luck. Until he hit a wall, he'd continue insisting. That would be the only way he'd stop.

Pretending not to notice the whispers that kept wondering how those blue eyes would look if she were forced to fight, the blond turned to the side, dragging his old blanket with him in an ineffectual attempt to ignore the growing dark void clawing at him. Me-chan was no fragile bird; the final decision would be hers to make. And if that ended up with her being swallowed too…then at the very least, he'd get the chance to see a pretty interesting sight as the two drowned.

A/N: So here we are, sorry this is a little shorter than usual, I wanted to stay in this portion of the story for a bit longer, exploring more on the characters and the like. As I said, I want to go at this as a bit of a character study and delve into the inner workings here, and for that I feel like going through the start of the relationship is sort of important, especially since it explains many of Kagome's actions, both once the story re-joins TR's original plot and the future timeline.

Also, so sorry if there are more grammatical errors than usual, I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to upload this today since I've got a cold and have been fighting off a fever for the last 4 days, so things may have slipped through during my last check. Still, most of the legwork was already done so it felt like a waste to delay it.

Thank you guys so much for the support, and for reading as always, any and each review/criticism/comment is greatly, greatly appreciated, they really help motivate me to keep on writing.