Chapter 18: Hokkaido Homecoming
'Ka-thunk, ka-thunk'
'Ka-thunk, ka-thunk'
'Ka-thunk, ka-thunk'
'Ka-thunk, ka-thunk'
Denji's eyes blearily crept open, a hand rising to rub the sleep from his eyes. He looked around, his vision still blurry. He could have sworn he was somewhere else a moment ago. Memories swirled in his head: a train many years older than this one, the smell of sea salt in the air as he walked across a bridge, a clear view of Fuji across the sea forming the backdrop of the quaint island town, its tight streets framed by torii gates, leading up towards a shrine.
Had he been alone? The faces had seemed blurry…
At that thought the last of this dreamy haze seemed to leave him and the scenery around him came into focus, along with the three amused faces of his fellow travellers peering at him.
"Well, looks like sleeping beauty is finally awake", Aki drolly remarked, "Look alive, we should be arriving in Aomori soon."
"Really? Thought this ride was meant to be like four hours?", Denji asked, it felt as if they had just gotten on…
"It's been three and a half hours, Denji"
"Pheah Benji- You sh- ACK", Power's attempted gloating was swiftly cut short as the fiend quickly learned the folly of trying to speak with her mouth full, a chunk of her pork cutlet bento lodging itself in her throat. Though as Aki moved to help Power, the man patting her back as she choked, Denji found he was quickly distracted from the scene by a hand resting on top of his own.
"For what it's worth Denji, you were adorable when you slept. Good dreams I take it?", Denji flustered as he turned to look at his girlfriend, Reze grinning cheekily as she leaned in closer.
"I, uhh, would say good. Not bad either though. Sunnier than it is up here anyway…", Denji replies, distracting from his embarrassment as he points out the window, "Yikes… I feel cold just looking out there!"
Indeed, out the window of the train, as it zoomed through the countryside of northern Japan, all that could be seen for miles was snow-dusted plains and white-capped hills. It made Denji very glad that he'd followed Aki's advice and packed some heavier clothes.
"Yeah, almost reminds of back… home", a frown tugged at the corner of Reze's lips, as if the word didn't quite sit right in her mouth, "Not quite as cold here though, despite how it's looking out there. Back in Russia, the soil would freeze so bad some areas would be totally inhospitable, according to the books anyways…"
"Huh… So, you'd never seen it then. Sounds crazy cold though!", Denji said, hoping to distract her, noticing the pensive look in Reze's eyes that appeared at the mention of her homeland, "Hey Aki, just how cold is it up near your hometown anyways? Colder than Russia?"
"Russia's a big place, depends where you're talking about. I know it will be below freezing in Eniwa round this time of year though", Aki, who had succeeded in his mission of preventing Power answered before checking his watch.
"We should be in Aomori soon, make sure you have your coats and everything on before we get off, I don't want to have any getting sick before we even get there; it's a long journey." Aki frowned, the thought of having to wrangle Power for an eight-hour ferry and bus journey causing a shiver to run up his spine.
"So, where are we stayin' again?", Denji asked, "Is it near Sapporo? I've heard of there before on T.V."
"Yeah, it's not too far off. We won't have time to head around that way though, once we visit the cemetery we'll be heading straight to the hotel. We need to be up bright and early for the bus back to Hakodate in the morning."
"Pah, Foolish human sentimentality! If we just skipped going to the cemetery, we cou-", Power's ever so compassionate interjection was quickly cut short as, when she had jumped up from her seat, working herself into a fervour, the remains of her meal had clattered onto the floor, completely ruined.
It was all quiet for a moment, the only sound being the train clunking down the tracks. Denji was about to poke fun at the fiend's run-in with instant karma, only to be interrupted by a new sound: sniffling.
And there Power stood, staring down at the remains of her pork cutlet with her misty eyes quickly pooling with tears and her pitiable sniffling intensifying.
"M-m-m-my p-p-p-ork…"
The three others looked on as Power turned from an arrogant fiend into a horned Kobeni in record time. They stayed frozen like that for what felt like an age, but in reality was only seconds, before Aki let out a deep sigh, rolling his eyes as he reached inside the small plastic bag at his feet, pulling out his own untouched meal.
"You can have this as long as you promise to keep your mouth shut till we get on the ferry. Deal?"
"Yes Hayakawa, sir!", Power quickly snatched the meal out of Aki's hands, her morose attitude flipping completely, the fiend practically glowing as she began scarfing down Aki's curry, humming happily as the others looked on, bemused.
"Ahhh… there it is again Denji", Reze grins slyly, nudging Denji as she pointedly jeered at Aki, an expression quickly mirrored by Denji.
"Yup, good ol' mother-hen Aki, always acting all cold, but he's a big softy under all that… Uhhh… what'd'ya call it Reze?"
"Angst?", Reze chirped, her innocent tone betrayed by the mischievous glint in her eyes.
"Yeah, that's it!", Denji grinned, pointing at an unamused Aki, "Who'd have thought him of all people would become a mother..."
"Almost brings a tear to my eye…"
"Enough of the tag-teaming you brats!", Aki snaps, eye twitching slightly as he glared at the couple, only to let out another long sigh as he pinched the bridge of his nose.
"Is there any deal I can make with you two that willat leastlet me have some peace and quiet until the ferry? Anything at all?"
"A pack of Aomori apples!"
"Deal", Aki was quick to agree to Reze's request, and she'd clearly done her research; apples in this prefecture are famed nationwide. He'd expected as much considering that the girl had spent the last couple of days with her nose buried in travel magazines…
"Uhhh… I know, I know! Sushi!"
"No, too expensive. Try again." Aki swiftly knocked down Denji's first suggestion, no way was he paying for sushi for four, maybe for one of their birthdays if they were lucky…
"Fiiine… Some curry ramen will do… Sitting in?"
"Take out only. We don't have that much time"
"…" Denji thought for a moment only for his shoulders to slump, pouting as he spoke "Deal…"
Aki let out a sigh of relief as the negotiations came to an end, leaning back in his seat and closing his eyes. There was no chance of him getting any real shut-eye, they were almost at Aomori after all, but if he pretended to be asleep they might give him some peace for the last twenty-odd minutes of the journey.
It was a plan that seemed to work, with Power seemingly content chowing down on Aki's lunch, whilst Reze and Denji tittered and giggled between themselves, alternating between teasing and flirting, well it was all just flirting if he was being honest…
Either way, Aki now had some time to think. He always went up to visit the grave near his home town on the anniversary of the Gun Devil's attack, and it had always been a very solemn affair, and one which he usually found himself dreading weeks in advance. This time however the date seemed to have snuck up on him, he was lucky he even managed to get all of the bookings, from the bullet train to the ferry, through in time.
He supposed that with everything that had happened recently, he'd just been too busy to really think about it, especially with those three to worry about. He hadn't originally planned to bring them along, but it didn't feel right to leave Power alone what with the state she'd been in following Hell, and the other two had practically invited themselves along after hearing he was going on a trip: presumably bored stiff after working their way through most of the box sets in the flat over their extended break from work.
'Maybe with some luck, the rest of the journey will tire them out…'
As it turned out, it hadn't just been wishful thinking on Aki's part that the rest of the journey would prove more peaceful. Throughout the ferry trip and onwards, both Denji and Reze had been more than content to keep to themselves, chatting and sharing their food. On the bus ride the bomb hybrid had even fallen asleep on Denji's shoulder, much to the boy's smug amusement, though before long he had also nodded off next to her.
Even Power had been subdued, well, at least by Power's standards anyway…
The fiend had spent most of their time on the ferry throwing up over the side of the railing, only to make a full recovery on the bus, with Aki having to stop the girl from treating the handles and seats of the bus as her own personal jungle gym.
Aki found himself thankful that he booked one of the good onsen inns to stay at, the place having an inclusive dinner delivered up to their room would likely prove fruitful, with Power throwing up most of her (his) lunch and then proceeding to no doubt work up a hunger with her impromptu gymnastics' routine on the bus.
He'd quickly allowed them to wander off and stretch their legs after the long journey whilst he went to pay his respects at his family's grave.
The graves were all lined up in neat, uniform rows, each identical pillar capped with soft white snow, the only distinguishing features being the names and offerings on and around each headstone.
And just like that, here he was again: standing in front of this oh-so-familiar gravestone, the single block of stone that marked the death of both his family and his childhood. And so, he stood staring at the marker for what he realised would be the last time.
"I-", his voice cracked as he went to speak, he hadn't felt this affected by this place for a long time, but this time… It was different. Usually, it felt near-oppressive to be here, he'd stand here for what would feel like, and what sometimes was, hours, all without saying a word, but now…
"Hey Mom, Dad… Taiyo…"
To this day Aki still winced as he said his brother's name, it felt so foreign to his tongue, yet so familiar at the same time, "This will be the last time I visit before I… end up here myself. I don't have much time left, couple of months at most, yet…"
Aki's stopped for a moment, his solemn expression softening as the words began flowing from his mouth, "I've lost people, friends, more… over the last year, but I feel, for once, that there's more for me to do than to just have my revenge, I need to make sure those three brats are… alright after I'm… gone."
"So I think I need to let go", Aki found that the words came rather easily to him, as if a dam had burst, "I'm giving up on hunting the Gun, the time I have left, I want to make sure they're… that they can live the lives that we could have lived."
With that Aki turned away, walking back towards the three teens, a sad smile coming to his face as he saw that they were in the middle of a snowball fight, one which Denji seemed to be losing horribly.
Aki looked over his shoulder to the grave once more, a fond smile on his face because, for the first time in a long while he felt unburdened by his past.
"I'll see you all soon."
"And just what are you lot doing?"
Aki had to force himself to take a stern tone as joined the three teens, torn between exasperation and amusement as he interrupted their snowball fight. However, as a snowball launched, courtesy of Power, straight into his face he found that same irritation he'd felt on the bus seeping back in.
"S-sorry Aki…", Power cowered a bit upon seeing Aki's annoyance, though Aki could've laughed if he wasn't trying to be the disciplinarian,'That girl's mood really does swing on a dime…'
"So? What have you lot been up to while I was at the grave?"
"Just a snowball fight, it's not like we've broken anything!" Denji protested, a little too quickly for Aki's taste: something was up here.
"Yuuup!", Reze chimed in, rocking on her feet as she grinned. Aki's eyes narrowed, suspicions only incensed by Reze's knowing grin and Denji's shifty eyes.
"Blearghh!"
Fortunately, or rather, unfortunately for Aki he didn't have to wait long to solve this mystery as Power keeled over, emptying the remaining contents of her stomach over the snow-laden path.
"Well, jigs up Denji!" Reze seemed pretty unbothered by the display, looking as if she'd been waiting for this exact thing to happen. Denji meanwhile just seemed pretty amused by the whole spectacle, rolling his eyes as he ribbed her, "Damn that's pretty weak Power, couldn't even keep grub like that down?"
"Twas… disgusting…", the fiend's face was ashen as she glared up at Denji from her bent-over position, looking as if she was struggling to choose between strangling Denji and barfing again. In the end, she didn't have time to do either as Aki roughly grabbed her by the shoulder, dragging her down the path towards the cemetery entrance.
"I told you those grave offerings would be off Power…", Reze smirked down at the fiend before nudging Denji in his side, "And aren't you glad you didn't eat any know Denji?"
"Hey! I'll have you know I've eaten much worse than that!" Denji proudly exclaimed in response, patting his stomach as he spoke, "I have a stomach of iron y'know!"
"Hahahaha! That not something to be proud of!" Reze could only laugh at her boyfriend's antics, looping her arm around Denji's neck, dragging him down enough for her to peck him on the cheek.
"Hahaha, Hey! Is this really appropriate in a graveyard?!"
Aki, equally annoyed by Power's desecration of some poor soul's grave and the sickening flirting of his other two wards, roughly grabbed Power by the shoulder, marching her towards the exit.
"A-aki, please I-I'll hu-hmhrp-"
"Oh no you don't! You can throw up again when we get out of here!", Aki barked as the fiend began dry heaving as he dragged her along, "You're just lucky you didn't hurl over someone's grave you damn glutton, now c'mon!"
"You two hurry up! The sooner we get to the inn, the sooner we can get some food Power can actually keep in her stomach!"
And that's how the Hayakawa family left the cemetery: Denji and Reze rosy-faced and laughing as they followed Aki and a struggling Power out of the cemetery. And, for the first time in years as Aki left this cemetery, this mass grave, he didn't feel sadness or grief. In past years he often left angry and bitter, at the Gun Devil, at the world, but right now he was just angry at the three teens he'd been saddled with.
They constantly irritated him, threw food, hogged the T.V., sometimes he'd even have to leave the flat just to get away from Denji and Reze's couple time…
But, as he went through the gates of the exit, he found that he felt lighter than usual. Between Power's misbehaviour and Denji and Reze's frustrating mix of teasing and irreverence he found that his thoughts didn't linger on that solemn concrete shrine to his past and that, for the first time, he'd left the cemetery with a smile on his face.
"Gahhh…. Damn, this is a hell of a place! How'd you afford all this Aki?!"
Denji leaned back on the ground as he let out a satisfied sigh, having just finished his share of the large spread of food that had been waiting for them in their room. Although Power had taken exception to a lot of the vegetable-based dishes, all four of them had had more than their fill, evidenced by Reze lying down next to him a moment later.
"Urghh… Definitely ate too much…" the girl in question let out a groan as shimmied closer to Denji, burying her face in his chest as she let out another long groan, "Oh God… Never let me eat that much again…"
"Public Safety is pretty generous with holidays, believe it or not", Aki responded, hiding a smirk behind his hand, enjoying the karmic justice of seeing the girl suffering from her own gluttony, "Miss Makima even said they'd cover accommodation this time, so I figured I'd go all out."
"Well, Powy seemed to enjoy it anyway. Well… mostly"
The fiend in question was currently engrossed in the T.V, God knows why she was so obsessed with some random cooking show, but they were more than happy to leave her be. It was an improvement from her tossing around green beans at any rate.
"So, anything else to do around here Aki? It's still kinda early…", Denji asked as he sat back up, a displeased Reze grumbling as he moved, sitting up next to him with a dirty look and a pout.
"Eniwa's a pretty dull place, not much to do unless you go up to Sapporo, and there's no time for that", Aki's replies, only to continue as he see the couple deflate in disappointment.
'Huh. They're clearly not that full if they want to head out already…'
Aki almost laughed upon seeing their palpable disappointment, "If you two want to do something, then I guess we can all head down to the hotel's hot spring once Power's show is over, okay?"
"You're only mentioning this now?!" Now he had their attention, both of them quickly recovering from their lethargic state, bolting upright in excitement, Reze seemed especially excited about this development, her prior lethargy all but forgotten as she looked over at Power.
"You sure we can't just leave her here; she seems pretty engrossed in that show…"
Aki just shook his head, "No way, Public Safety may be paying, but you can be sure that I'll be held accountable if she damages anything while we're gone."
"Tch… Fine…", Reze was back to pouting now, torn between excitement that she'd get to relax in one of Japan's famous onsen for the first, and dread that she'd likely have to babysit Power the whole time, the gears in her head already turning, attempting to think of a way to both have her cake and eat it.
"Any complaints from you Denji?", Aki turned his attention to the blonde boy, eyebrow raised questioningly.
"Except from having to listen to you the whole time we're down there? Nah, not really", Denji snarked in response as Aki just rolled his eyes and began tidying up their dinner table, being sure not to miss the loose vegetables Power hand slung all over it.
"Just make sure to have your towels and robes ready. And all of you be on your best behaviour, okay?"
As it turns out, the novelty of the hot spring wore off quite quickly, or at least for Denji anyway. For the first twenty-odd minutes it had been nice, just relaxing in the water and soaking in the quaint atmosphere, but after that initial honeymoon period, he realised something…
'Goood, Aki is sooo boorring…'
Denji had tried starting a conversation with Aki a few times now, but Aki hadn't given any answer except some hums of acknowledgement and the odd 'shut up' just for some variety. The last time Denji had looked over Aki's way, the man had been half asleep.
'Great, now what…?', Denji sighs as he sinks into the water up to his chin, letting out a small sigh as he sunk down further, blowing bubbles in the water in a vain attempt to amuse himself,'Guess I'll just have wait patiently till he wants to go… Yeah, I'm patient as hell!'
And so, Denji sat there trying to keep himself busy, fiddling with the starter cord hanging from his chest,'Shame I can't talk to you right now buddy…'
And so it was that Denji was stuck watching idly as the water trickled down into the spring, that and Aki's shallow breathing being the only noise in the deserted pool. It wasn't long until Denji's 'vast' reserves of patience ran out.
"Hey Aki, gonna take a dump!"
Denji was striding towards the exit and wrapping his towel around his waist before Aki even had a chance to hum his consent. Only a few minutes later and Denji had dried himself off, thrown on a robe and begun his trek back up to their room.
'Hopefully there's something decent on T.V, though anything's better than just sittin' there…'
It was surprisingly quiet in the inn, Denji thought it was odd. He'd assumed that it'd be busier in Eniwa around this time of year, all the magazines Reze had been reading had said winter sports like skiing and snowboarding were massive up here, but he supposed they must all just stay in Sapporo.
'Definitely more to do there than here, that's for sure…', Denji groused internally, shoving his hands in his robe pockets as he walked,'Wonder how Reze is getting on with Powy, hopefully she's hav-'
Denji was dragged from his thoughts quite literally as a hand grabbed his arm from a dark hallway as he walked past, pulling him roughly to the side and nearly bringing him crashing to the ground.
"The he-!"
"Shhhhhh!"
Denji quickly found himself pinned against the hallway wall, a hand clamped over his mouth and a familiar set of green eyes peering up at him slyly, the twin emeralds glinting with the light of the setting sun, "So, ditched Aki already hmmm? I'm sure he'll be absolutely heartbroken…"
The smirking girl removed her hand from Denji's mouth as she took a step back, allowing Denji to get a good look at her, the last of the daylight shining in through the window bathing her in a warm orange glow. Much like himself, she looked like she was fresh out of the bath: wrapped only in her robe, her raven hair still damp and hanging down to her shoulders, doing little to hide the uncovered grenade pin on her neck.
"What's up? Starstruck Deeenji?", Reze teased, before quickly realising just where Denji's gaze had landed, her hand rising almost self-consciously to her pin shifting side-to-side uncomfortably, "Oh this? Well… I just figured that since it was quiet and... You'll think it's stupid…"
"Doubt anything you say could be stupid honestly", Denji responded as straightforwardly as always, "So what's up? Why're you out already, bored too?
"Well, I wouldn't say bored, it was nice relaxing in there, when I could get some peace anyway…", Reze griped, her annoyance palpable, "It's easy for Aki to say Power had to come with us when he's not having to fight to keep her under control. Feels like revenge on his part…"
"Eh, probably is. He can be petty like that. Doesn't explain what you're doin' out here though."
"Ah, yeah… Well…" Reze looked conflicted for a moment, looking away as her finger toyed with her pin, clearly procrastinating on what she was about to say. However, it wasn't long before she looked back at Denji, certainty in her eyes as grabbed his hand, gently tugging him down the hallway.
"Just follow me, I know somewhere we can… talk…"
And so Denji let his girlfriend guide him down the hall, the patter of their bare feet on the wooden floor being the only sound as they hurried through the quiet halls and back towards the bathing area.
"Hey Reze, why're we heading back that way?", Denji half-whispered as they moved, with Reze only looking back with a playful wink and a grin.
"Well, you'll just have to wait and see, won't you? I won't be giving you any spoilers…" Reze stuck out her tongue as she began to slow her pace, with both of them coming to a stop before a locked door, Reze, without missing a beat, pulled a key out from her bathrobe unlocking the door, turning to Denji as the door swung open, "Don't worry, you won't be waiting long now…"
"Taaadaaa!", Reze spread her arms open wide as they entered the room, Denji gawping in amazement at what he saw, "Welcome to our very own private onsen, for one night only!"
The room was small enough, with only a small living room space with a small T.V, a table and a couple of chairs. But the thing that really drew Denji's attention was what was beyond this room: a pair of sliding glass doors leading to a traditional-looking yet luxurious pool, steam rising languidly from its surface.
"Holy crap!", Denji ran to the doors, quickly sliding them open and looking at the onsen in awe, "How'd you even get this room Reze?!"
"Oh, a bit of this and bit of that really…" She smiled coyly as she walked past her boyfriend and towards the water, "Now, shall we?"
Denji's mouth dropped open as Reze, her back to him, dropped her robe to the ground, revealing her naked back to him in all its glory, before slowly, deliberately walking into the pool.
"So, you coming or what?", Reze asked with faux innocence, eyes shining mischievously as she turned in the water to face him, her body obscured by the water and steam.
"Y-yeah!", Denji quickly dropped his robe and rushed into the water, nearly falling in in his haste. And so both of them sat opposite each other, Denji fidgeting nervously and Reze trying to hide her grin.
"S-so, what'd you do with Powy anyway?"
"Oh, I just left her there, she seemed pretty tired, I'll let her revert to being Aki's problem. Besides…", Reze swiftly moved through the water until she was right next to Denji, sidling up next to him, pressing her body flush to his.
Denji was speechless, his face red as a beet and his mouth flapping haplessly as Reze continued speaking in a sultry purr. "We aren't here to talk about Power, we're here to talk about us. Or rather…", and quick as a flash she moved again, twisting around and straddling Denji, pinning him to the edge of the bath, her full weight resting on his bare lap.
"I can think of some… other things, we can do instead…"
Denji was like a deer in the headlights as he stared at the girl on top of him, eyes trailing up and down her lithe body, from her toned stomach to her breasts. By the time Denji's eyes had reached hers, Reze had already closed the distance between them, capturing his lips in a deep kiss. The young couple's tongues duelled as their hands wandered, exploring each other's bodies ravenously.
Denji found that he was committing each feeling, each detail, to his memory: from the small things like the warmth of her hands and the length of her fingers, all the way to the softness of her breasts under his hands.
This continued until they were forced to pull apart for air, both panting heavily as they looked into each other's eyes, their flushed faces filled with longing.
"D-denji, I love you…" Reze whispered breathlessly, the words dripping with sincerity as she ran her hand gently down the side of Denji's face her eyes communicating only pure, unadulterated adoration.
Denji was similarly enraptured, gazing up at his girlfriend in amazement. It hadn't been long ago that he'd been on the streets, alone with no one but Pochita to care for him, the idea of having a girl who loved him in his arms being little more than a dream he'd hold close on a cold night. Even after his date with Miss Makima, he'd been left wondering if anyone could actually love him. And now he had his answer.
"Denji, you okay? You're crying…"
"Ah crap.. sorry, I do-" Denji quickly reached up to wipe his eyes, only for Reze to beat him to it, tenderly wiping away a few tears with her thumb.
"You don't need to apologise, I get it. I get it…"
Suddenly Denji grabbed Reze, pulling her in close and into a tight embrace, leaving no space at all between them.
"I love you too… Reze."
Nothing else needed to be said as Reze just melted into his embrace, both of them just staying still, simply enjoying being in each other's arms. That was until Denji felt something soft and wet pressing against his neck, and then again.
Reze was trailing kisses down Denji's neck, before separating from him again, her eyes boring into his as she looked at him, her gaze as soft, yet nearly… hungry.
"Denji… I said I'd teach you everything, I don't know much about this myself but… What do you think of, y'know... doing it? Learning… Together…?"
Denji didn't need much convincing as he reeled her back, almost reverent as he replied.
"Yeah… Together."
"And just where did you two disappear to?"
To say Aki was pissed when Denji and Reze eventually made their way back to the hotel room would be an understatement, with even Reze looking sheepish as the pair withered under his gaze.
"Uhh, we were just in a- ah!", Denji's response was quickly cut off as Reze elbowed him in the side, an almost eerily fake smile on her face.
"We were just walking around exploring and lost track of time. That's all."
The pair had shuffled into the room near midnight, having spent much longer 'exploring' than they had thought, only to find that Aki was waiting there for them; and that he was not one bit happy about neither their disappearance nor them leaving him to deal with Power.
"So you were justexploring… Untilmidnight…", Aki's eyes narrowed as the two teens stood at the door uncomfortably, Denji scratching the back of his head nervously whilst Reze stood stock-still, her only tells being the nearly imperceptible shifting of her eyes, as if she was looking for an escape as well as the dusting of red on her cheeks.
'Wait…', Aki suddenly came to a realisation, the way the two were acting all nervous, Denji looking away with a blush even more intense than Reze's, not arriving back till this late and they even seemed to be in a pretty good mood despite being in trouble…
'Oh for fuck sake…'Aki groaned as he pinched the bridge of his nose, letting out a sigh as he got up and walked over to take a seat at the table by the window,'I'm not dealing with this crap right now.'
"You know what, I don't even want to know. Just be glad that Power didn't break anything and get to bed, we have another early start tomorrow."
Both Denji and Reze let out a small sigh of relief, grinning at each other briefly before they began making their way to the bedroom making sure to be as quiet as possible, to not wake up the fiend, who was currently fast asleep, splayed out across two futons and snoring loudly enough to be heard from the other room.
As they made their way to the bedroom, Denji took one last look back into the living room. He wasn't exactly sure why, maybe he was just nervous that Aki was still mad at them and was plotting a fitting punishment, or if he was honest he was just concerned with the older man, who was just sitting at the table, eyes trained on the harsh landscape beyond the window.
"Hey, Reze. I'll be in in a minute, 'kay?", Denji whispered to her as he, the girl only smiled and nodded as he walked back towards Aki, a knowing smile on her face as she went into the bedroom to prep herself for bed.
Aki seems to pay little attention as Denji makes his way over, eyes fixed on the window even as the boy sits down on the chair opposite him, joining Aki in staring out at the landscape. It was all silent for a while, the only sounds being the howling of the wind outside and the soft snores of Power from the other room, though it wasn't long before Denji broke this relative silence.
"Don't know how you're getting lost in this view. Can't see shit out there…"
Aki didn't give any real sign that he'd heard Denji, just taking a sip of the can of beer he'd been nursing for the last half hour.
"Every year when I went to visit their grave, I'd remember only the bad things", Aki didn't look directly at Denji even as he spoke, his voice pretty relaxed and thoughtful despite the rather grim topic, "It was depressing."
"But this time all of you were such pests, I didn't even have time to get lost in all of that."
Denji was shocked as he looked at the older man, who himself had never looked away from the endless snowscape outside.
"Oh. Uhhh… you're welcome…", Denji said, unsure at what to think about Aki's revelation before turning back to look out the window again himself.
"Hey… Aki, is it okay if I ask you something, uhhh… personal…?"
They had been sitting for a few minutes when Denji spoke again, the question quickly getting Aki's attention as he turned away from the window finally, raising an eyebrow at Denji's unusual nervousness.
"Depends what about. Shoot."
"Well, I just wanted to ask… And don't get mad but… What did you think of Himeno?"
Aki visibly winced at the mention of his old partner, not responding for a moment, simply nudging his near-empty beer can across the table, his brow furrowed as he thought hard about the question.
"I… I'm not really sure…", It felt as if a fog had descended on his mind, why was he not able to answer? Why did it all seem so… fuzzy?
"Well, she seemed pretty sure 'bout how she felt about you", Denji said, his apprehension giving way as he continued speaking with growing confidence, "Wanted my help to get with you and everything…"
Aki flinched as the words left Denji's mouth, feeling the fog lift from his brain as he absorbed what Denji said. He opened his mouth to respond only to slowly close it again, exhaling through his nose as he leaned back in his seat.
"Hey Aki, it's okay, you don't need to answer or anything, just don't g-"
"Don't… It's fine", Aki sighed as he looked at Denji, a small smile tugging at the corner of his lips, "I'm not mad or anything, just… surprised. It's not like you to ask about something like that."
"Hey! I care plenty 'bout all that stuff!", Denji protested, the boy's vehement half-whispered complaint making Aki chuckle.
"Sure, sure", Aki waves off Denji's complaints airily before looking out the window once again, a wistful look on his face. "To answer your question, I'm not really sure… I was that focused on killing the Gun that I neglected other more important things, more important people"
"Did you know, she asked me so many times to leave Public Safety, to go private with her… and every time I refused. Only after she died did I think: 'Why didn't I leave?', it's not like I have much chance of killing the Gun Devil myself anyway."
Denji was surprised by this admission from Aki, just months ago it would've been unthinkable to hear Aki say such a thing, indeed if anyone had suggested such a thing to the man himself, he'd likely treat the mere notion with nothing but scorn. Now though he seemed oddly at peace with the notion.
"Whatever happens Denji, just make the most of what you and Reze have and remember what's really important. If you don't, you'll just end up regretting it."
"Yeah, I will… Thanks Aki…"
The two men sat in silence after that for some time, just watching as the snowstorm began to calm, Aki having little else to say and Denji being deep in thought, mulling over what the older man had said.
It wasn't long before Denji had made his way to bed, Reze and Power both being asleep by the time he settled down into his futon. As he nodded off he found himself thinking about the trip: the travel had been exhausting, with the endless hours travelling by rail, boat and bus taking its toll, Power's antics and the weather chilling him to the bone. Despite all this though he only had one thought as he drifted off to sleep.
'It was cold… but I still had fun…'
He'd asked Kishibe to remove his name from the expedition.
Aki almost couldn't believe that he'd made that choice, a year ago he'd never have abandoned his vendetta against the Gun Devil, but when he was making his request to Kishibe, he found the words had come to him rather easily.
The reason was a rather simple one after all: he'd gotten cold feet, as simple as that. After watching Denji, Power and even Reze nearly die in Hell, he'd been unable to do a single thing to protect them. How the hell could he live with himself if they got hurt or worse all because of his crusade against the Gun?
And here he was, sitting in the lobby at Public Safety headquarters; Meowy in his carrier at his side and a pile of missed paperwork in his lap. He was getting some strange looks as walked past him, likely because the cat at his side hadn't stopped meowing ever since he'd gotten it back from Kishibe.
"We'll get you back to Power soon, so quiet down", Aki rolled his eyes as he spoke to the cat, reaching through the grate of the carrier and scratching it under the chin, a small smile on his face as the cat nuzzled into his hand, purring loudly, "Power really has you spoilt rotten, huh?"
"Long time no see, Aki! Didn't take you as the type to talk to animals."
Aki looked up, recognising the familiar voice, the Kyoto accent instantly clueing him in even before he saw the woman approaching him. Tendo was walking across the lobby towards him, waving with one hand and grasping a crutch with the other as she limped over to him
"Oh, Tendo! It's good to see you up and about again", Aki moved to get up to greet her, only for the woman to smile wryly and shake her head.
"No need to stand up Aki, I'll join you, need a rest anyways", Tendo haltingly closed the distance between them, only to stumble and half fall onto the seat next to Aki, hissing in pain as her crutch clattered to the ground.
"Gah! Damn it!", Tendo grumbled as she leaned forward from the seat, picking her crutch up and leaning it against the wall next to her. Now that he had a good look at her face, Aki noticed that the scar that had once run across only half her face now went all the way across, marring it with a harsh horizontal streak.
"You okay Tendo?", Aki asks, his voice laced with concern as he looked at the woman worriedly. Tendo however just waved off his concern, letting out a tired sigh.
"'Bout as well as can be expected", Tendo winced as she settled into the seat, "Was bleeding out and Punishment saved me and in return gave me a bum leg, chronic pain and a prettier face", her voice dripped with sarcasm as she pointed at her extended scar.
"Honestly, the only thing that pisses me off is the pain, fucking devil made sure that painkillers do next to nothing for me, only ones that work practically make me delirious. The leg may make me feel like a damn invalid, but at least I can forget about that sometimes, y'know?"
"Yeah, I know how you feel. Missing an arm is a pain, but I think I'm lucky all things considered", Aki commiserated with the woman, his face softening further as he put his hand lightly on her shoulder, "I'm sorry about Kurose, I know you two were very close…"
"Thanks Aki…", for a split second the woman's unbothered façade crumbled, the pain in her eyes clear and vivid for the first time, only to disappear again just as quickly, a tired smile replacing it.
"I'm glad for one thing at least, the scar… it's kind of like a reminder, like I'm carrying a bit of him with me."
"Were you two…?", Aki asked tentatively, only for Tendo to laugh mirthlessly.
"Nah, we weren't anything like that, just friends. Grew up together, went to school together, joined Public Safety together", Tendo's lips twisted into a bitter smile as she barked out a laugh, "Practically did everything together. My mother was desperate for us to get together back when we were younger, but even the idea made both of our skins crawl!"
"Take it you heard that we killed the assassin impersonating Kurose. Higher-ups say that his two brothers were also KIA", Aki said, hoping to offer her some solace by reminding her that the perpetrators of her buddy's death were already dead and buried. However, this didn't seem to be new news to Tendo, who simply frowned clearly unsatisfied.
"I heard, but they were just hunting dogs, I'm after the brains behind the operation."
"You have any leads on who it could have been? I assumed it was just the Americans given that's where they were from."
"Hmm…", Tendo hummed as if deep in thought before turning to Aki with a conspiratorial grin, "Wouldn't you like to know?"
"Well, I'll have to be going now Aki, Kishibe's working me like a dog", Tendo said, grabbing her crutch and shakily rising to her feet, cussing as she stumbled again, having put too much weight on her bad leg.
"Tell you what Aki, how 'bout we meet up for some drinks on Saturday and we continue this little chat, hmmm?", she looked over her shoulder at Aki with a grin.
"You can count on it", Aki replied, his curiosity gnawing at him as Tendo turned her back to him again, waving as she hobbled away.
"Good! It's a date!"
Aki really should have seen this outcome coming when he'd trusted the three stooges to make dinner.
Aki knew something was up after he heard his three wards scheming through the door before he'd even entered, suddenly regretting his decision to forgo grabbing some food from the convenience store by the train station as he turned the key and pushed open the front door.
When he entered the flat was suddenly silent, with Aki walking into the living room to find Denji, Power and Reze standing around the kitchen counter. With Power's eyes moving side-to-side shiftily, sweat beading on her brow. Meanwhile, Denji and Reze were leaning on the other end of the counter, each with a mug of coffee and looking as innocent as can be.
Too innocent.
"Alright, what are you three hiding?", Aki said sternly as he set Meowy's carrier down beside the table.
"What do you mean? Me and Denji were just testing how much he's improved his brewing. He's almost good enough to be a part-timer at my old place.", Reze easily replied, Denji quickly nodding along, with Aki just raising an eyebrow sceptically.
"I told you to make dinner, not coffee. So where is it?"
"Oh, that? Power ate it ages ago. You really should've seen that one coming honestly", Reze said nonchalantly, Power's head turning to Reze so fast he was pretty sure a normal human's neck would've broken.
"Y-you, TRAITOR!", Power yelled at the other girl, marching up to her and squaring up to her, "We were meant to cover for each other! Hath you no honour?!"
"Shoulda thought of that before you tried blaming me for blocking the toilet last week Powy", Denji chirped in with a smirk, one that was reflected on Reze's face.
"Sorry Power, but we weren't just going to wait for you to blame it all on us."
"H-h-how did you know that?!", Power stuttered, stepping back from the Reze in shock, the Russian's smirk turning into a full-on grin.
"Oh, I didn't. But I feel preeetty damn vindicated now."
"Right, enough you lot!", Aki snapped, walking past them opening the fridge and grabbing a beer from the back, Himeno's favourite brand, and marching his way over to the sofa and flopping down into it with a contented sigh, cracking open the can and taking a long, deep swig.
"Just make sure whatever mess you lot are hiding is tidied before you go to bed."
As the teens skulked their way to their bedrooms, Power and the others bickering as they went, Aki found himself flicking through the channels of the T.V. until he finally settled on one of his favourite cooking shows.
Watching these sorts of shows was a habit he'd gotten into after Denji and Power had first moved in, and a useful one at that. It was hard to keep meals feeling fresh when cooking for three, and they gave him plenty of ideas. However, despite having to put so much more effort into cooking, it was a nice change to be making home-cooked meals.
There hadn't been much point in putting that much effort into it when he'd lived alone, the only person he'd cooked for during his time at Public Safety had been Himeno, and half the time she'd just as likely to drag him out somewhere to eat than to sit in and wait for him to cook something up.
Aki smiled as a thought came to mind. Power may be a lost cause in the kitchen, but the other two. Surely he could teach them something? It'd go a long way to preventing another ruined dinner like that night's.
Aki took another swig of beer as a plan formulated in his mind: those two would be getting lessons whether they wanted to or not. Any pleasure he'd get in playing the harsh taskmaster well you could call that an added bonus.
Welp, finally got this chapter done, was sitting on having most of it done for a long while now, but hadn't got a chance to finish it off and check it over until this weekend. With the Denji/Reze inn scene I was wondering whether I wanted to write it since I'm not really a big fan of writing lemon scenes, but I figured it was important to show their relationship was getting intimate at some point so I decided to go for a half-way house and write the tamer bits and insinuate the rest, sorry to anyone who would have wanted the whole thing!
Anywho, thanks for reading!
(As an aside, I might write a special chapter for Christmas. Last year I wrote a one-shot but this year I'd like to focus on this, so hopefully I'll have the time to write it)