Shadows & Chaos - 4

"Are you TRYING to get us killed?! HUH?!" He slammed her against the wall with a roar of fury. "ARE YOU?"

"No...." She answered in a timid voice. "I was just--"

"Being a MORON!" He snarled. "Going out and risking the lives of your team over WHAT? A misunderstanding with that pathetic excuse for a man! WHAT was going through that empty mind of yours?!"

*  *  *

    Amefuri jerked awake with a strangled cry, waiting for the haunting memories to vanish back into her subconscious. The dream was too vivid to dismiss this time. It even sounded as if somebody was laughing at her cowardice. But the laughter was real, and it was a long time before Amefuri pulled free of her thoughts to realized that. 

    Confused, she rose from the bed and looked around the room. The formless shadows from a few moments before became recognizable. A desk, a chair, a table. It appeared that the room was real but not quite right. Looking closer at a room, her eyes fell upon an unusual shadow in the corner that she didn't notice before. 

    Before she could get up and examine the odd shadow, soft candle light spilled into  the room. Amefuri looked up to see a familiar silhouette standing in the doorway, watching her.

    "You okay?"  

    "Yes," she replied.

    "Ame? Are you certain?" 

    "Kou-" She began to speak, but then, a long dark braid to swing into view. "...Chikawa?"

    Yorukai closed the door without a word. 

    She watched as Yorukai sat down beside the bed and looked up at her. It appeared as if he was deciding whether or not to say something. An long silence filled the room. 

    "Chikawa, what is going on?"

    Yorukai's eyes snapped back into focus and he flashed a confidant smile. "Ame-chan, I'm very happy to see you're finally awake."

    Amefuri scowled.

    "You've been unconscious for three days. It looked like you wouldn't wake up at one point."

    "Three days?"

    "I would have woke you up but..." Yorukai glanced at something behind her. "It's good that you're awake now." 

    "I'm sure."

    "You lost a lot of blood. I was going to take you to a doctor, but Akuma said not to. He thought that your injuries weren't that serious. Akuma said that you could stay here, at our place, until you woke up."

    "How kind."

    "He said something about how you survive, despite others' best attempts to kill you...like some kind of a bug. I can't remember what kind it was now. I'm sure that Akuma can tell you about it later. He would remember."

    "He would."

    "I'm glad that he was right. About surviving I mean, not about you being a bug. Well, maybe if you were a nice bug, like a praying mantis or a spider. Maybe not a spider. Well, it would depend on the kind of spider."

    "Mokutou."

    "Akuma." Amefuri was almost happy to see him.

    Akuma looked at Yorukai and smirked at Amefuri. "Ahh... what better person to welcome you back the world of the living than our dear friend Yorukai?"

    "Aku-san!" Yorukai jumped to his feet and with a guilty look.

    "Don't worry about it," Akuma said, then turned to Amefuri.  "He wants to talk to you."

    "Why should I care?" Amefuri snarled. 

    Akuma smiled sweetly. "Time's up."

*  *  *

    The young man hastily bowed to the man behind the desk before speaking. "Sir, I'm sorry to report that she has refused to come to the meeting."

    "There are no need for formalities around me." The man looked faintly amused. 

    Kouhei faltered and cast a look over his shoulder.

    "There's nobody but us." The man repeated slowly, allowing Kouhei to fully absorb his words. "You know that I only tolerate such... formal language when I absolutely have to."

    Kouhei nodded slowly.

    "Besides," The man continued. "The only other person that would know the truth about what we're talking about is our reluctant, and somewhat tardy, companion." 

    "Sir. I don't think that we should talk so openly."

    "Kouhei," The man sighed in exasperation. "Are you even listening to me? Did I not just say that there is no need to be so formal with me? We are old friends, correct?"

    "Of course we are, Kakusu-sama." Kouhei said gravely. "But I still think we shouldn't be so casual, SIR." 

    Kakusu Mikata's face twitched with suppressed frustration, and he was sorely tempted to yell at his best friend of countless years when he noticed a tiny smile on Kouhei's face. All at once, he understood and pointed an accusing finger at the silver-and-red-haired man. 

    "You...!"

    Kouhei grinned. "Don't worry Mikata, I'll bring her home."

*  *  *

    "Was that really necessary?" A young, white-haired man asked, uncertainly. "There had to be a better way of doing things..."

    His companion shot him an acid look. "No. There wasn't."

    "We didn't have to run her off like that," The young man looked unconvinced. "There ARE subtler ways to get someone to leave, you know."

    "Perhaps, but we don't have the time." The other man snapped.

    "You're probably right, but I just hope that she's going to be okay."

    "Of course she will."

    "If you say so." 

*  *  *

    Amefuri stumbled to a halt as the pain became almost too much to bear. She knew that it was suicide to confront him in this condition, but there were very few options left. Akuma's message had made that clear. All that she could do was hope that he wasn't expecting her so soon.

"I will fight. I owe him that much, at least." She reached under the collar of her shirt and pulled out her crystal. 

"Epsilon Light! Ma-- "

"You know better than to battle when you're injured."   

     Amefuri shoved the crystal into a pocket and spun to face her opponent, only to come face-to-face with a familiar person. All thoughts of retaliation fled from as she stared at Kouhei smiling softly at her.

"You-- I... was...." Amefuri desperately searched her mind for an excuse that he would believe, but nothing presented itself.   

    Kouhei stepped towards her and gently brushed his fingers against her cheek. Amefuri stiffened and jerked away. His hand fell back to his side. 

    "Kouhei," She whispered. 

    "Why do you look so sad?" Genuine concern filled his face as she stood poised, like a wary deer ready to bound away at the slightest noise. This wasn't the girl he was used to seeing. 'We've both changed so much,' he thought unhappily.

    "I have no reason to happy." Amefuri turned away. 

    "Did something happen?" 

    "You should know." She snapped.

    Kouhei flinched from the hatred in her voice. He wanted desperately to comfort her, to know what words could erase the chasm between them that developed, unnoticed, over the years they've been apart. No, it started before then. It all started when her brother disappeared, all those years ago. Kouhei would give anything to be able to change things, but he knew that there was no magic like that existed. Despite all the things he... they... had gone through to get stronger, it was had to believe that everything was destroyed, because of neglect.

    "You had no right to order me around," She continued.

    "No, I don't," Kouhei apologized softly. "I made a mistake and am truly sorry for everything I said." 

    "Do you think," Amefuri snarled, "That I would ever accept your pathetic apology as the truth and forget everything that you've done?"

    "I know that you will never forgive me and I don't expect you to. I just thought that... maybe... it would make you happy to hear me say it." 

    Amefuri found herself unable to answer.

    "But it doesn't matter anymore, right?" Kouhei offered a weak smile. "Since I've come to give you another reason to hate me."

    "What do you want from me?" Amefuri whispered uncertainly as Kouhei leaned towards her. A warm hand closed over hers and pulled her against him, stirring half-forgotten memories of what could have been, as he lowered his face to hers.

    A rough voice interrupted them by saying, "What I want, is for you to leave her be." 

    Instinctively, the pair leapt apart and reached for their weapons and as the glint of a metallic object drew their attention skyward. But despite the immediate danger, Amefuri couldn't help but feel a bit thankful for the interruption. 

'If things continued like that...' She quickly pushed the thought from her mind and reached inside her jacket for her Soul Crystal. She didn't have the time to worry about missed chances with the silver-haired man. The clouds began to clear, allowing enough of the night sky to reveal their new guest.

    In the man's gloved hands was a sword with a silver blade. 

    The flickering star light caught upon a blood-red crystal shard that hung around his neck on a sturdy silver chain. Seated upon the roof of a near-by building was a man with midnight blue hair and eyes that shone electric blue. He wore a blue-grey shirt underneath a leather jacket of a red so dark, it made the cloth tied around his forehead appear to glow the colour of blood. Loose, dark grey pants hung comfortably from the man's slender hips and travelled down his long legs, where they were eventually tucked into sturdy brown hiking boots. 

    Shinigami trailed his fingers down the faintly glowing blade and watched them.
 

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