GetBackers Fan Fiction ❯ Uncontrol ❯ Alone ( Chapter 3 )

Note: I'm SO sorry for leaving this hanging for so long!!! I got pneumonia earlier in the summer, and it landed me in the hospital. I've been completely out of commission since mid July. But, I'm home now and finally able to write down and upload this chapter. WHEW.

 

To all my reviewers: Rhea, Blackangeltwin1, Hakushuku Cain, animewolfgurl, Katrina, toot, E-san, Lorien Lupin, Ivaeddia, and my ever faithful fallingfarther… Thank you SO MUCH!!! Your support means the world to me…. And has made me eager to finally be well enough to write more. Hope I don't disappoint you all now!

 

So… on to the story.

Standard disclaimers apply.

 

 

 

Chapter Four: Alone

 

 

 

 

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She wasn't sure what she'd been expecting upon entering the mind of Midou Ban, but Himiko was positive that it was this. Everything was dark—pitch black. For weeks before the anniversary of this day, the young woman had planned for the moment that she would force her way in. She had spent every sleepless night lying awake, wondering what nightmare her brother's murderer would unleash on her if given the chance. Maybe she was expecting something more eventful—more hateful—within the confines of the Evil Eye's cage.

 

Shaking dripping green hair from her eyes, Himiko took a confident step forward into the dark. She squinted her eyes as if she could expel the blackness from her vision. Fists clenched at her sides.

 

“Show him to me, murderer,” she murmured to herself. The darkness trembled around her. “Pretend for just one minute that you ever gave a shit about us. Be something other than the lying snake you are for just one minute.” Cracks formed in the black walls surrounding her. The air in her lungs—Ban's lungs maybe—shuttered. She pressed on, not to be denied. “You owe me this much, you arrogant son of a— ”

 

The world around her collapsed, and she realized the nightmare had begun the moment she looked into Midou's eyes—sharp blue eyes that were suddenly staring across at her from the face of a younger Midou Ban that materialized from the dark. Her heart clenched as she recognized the familiar figure that stood motionlessly in front of her, shades sliding low on his nose. He looked as young as he did the moment Yamato brought him home…

 

… Yamato...

 

“What the hell is this, Midou,” she croaked angrily. The figure smirked.

 

Himiko blinked, and suddenly she wasn't facing Midou Ban on her feet. She vaguely registered gravel and broken glass digging into her right side as she found herself lying on the hard ground of a building she didn't recognize. A wetness met her limp hand on the floor, and her dazed mind wondered if maybe it was raining here, too. Dark, sinister laughter rumbled across the walls of the empty building. A freezing chill shot through her still body.

 

Another blink and the master of the Evil Eye who looked so painfully young was lying on his side as well, facing her. The wet sensation on her hand spread to knees and stomach, and Himiko only then realized that she was lying in a stream of cold, sticky blood—a stream spreading from a pool underneath Midou Ban's broken body, whose eyes were fixed on her in a lifeless glazed stare. She only then realized she couldn't remember looking Ban straight in the eyes before. She wondered if she had ever seen them before they were dead as they were now.

 

She wondered if her big brother had.

 

… Brother…

 

Himiko closed her eyes to the lifeless form of the young brunette on the dirty floor beside her and forced herself to growl out against the unwanted lump lodged in her throat. “Enough, echoed against the walls, erasing the remnants of the deep laughing that had just begun to recede. The echoes died and Himiko thought she would choke on the sudden silence. “Enough of your lies, you bastard.” She wished she had enough control over herself to stand up. Or at least to stop the tremble in her hoarse voice. She bit her lip and glared into the dull blue eyes. “Show him to me.”

 

And suddenly her beloved big brother was kneeling beside her, eyes clear and intelligent, but not soft the way they used to be when he looked at her. His eyes were sad—as close to despairing as she had ever seen. Himiko opened her mouth to ask her brother what was wrong, only to find her body erupting in pain. A gasp escaped as she tried to reach out to grab her brother's hand that wavered uncertainly over her—as if he was unsure if he could touch her.

 

Yamato pulled his hand back, and the girl's heart suddenly felt so terribly cold. She gazed up at him, silently begging to explain why he would not speak—why he wouldn't comfort her when she was in such agonizing pain. Her vision began to fade to black and she only then realized that Yamato, and everything around her, had been tinted purple.

 

 

 

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The pounding weather was relentless on the streets of Shinjuku—relentless on the two figures racing down the otherwise deserted streets. The air was so think with rain that Shido didn't see his former emperor pull to a dead stop in front of him. It took all of his enhanced reflexes to avoid a head-on collision. The Beast Master stepped up beside the blond and rested a hand on his should in what he hoped was a gesture of reassurance. Reassurance for what, he wasn't quite sure.

 

Reassurance that they would find Ba—the Snake Bastard? Reassurance that he would be okay? Shido cursed himself for caring, although he was quickly resigning himself to the fact that he couldn't easily dismiss the concern that grew steadily in his chest. He turned to catch Ginji's gaze with a sympathetic smile as the former Raitei took stock of their location. Shido was surprised and confused to see the same expression reflected back at him through rain-soaked blond bangs.

 

“Ginji-san… what—” he blurted, but Ginji was already shaking his head and seemed to be calculating a path through the gloomy streets. Getbackers Super Radar, Ginji had jokingly explained it to him once many months back. I always know how to find Ban-chan, and Ban-chan finds me whenever I'm lost. Getbackers always get back each other! he had exclaimed brightly. This night, however, Amano Ginji was anything but bright and cheerful.

 

“He needs me, Shido-kun,” he murmured quietly, almost inaudible under the sound of the pummeling rain. “I felt it. I felt it so bad. But now…” he turned hopelessly lost eyes on the Beast Master and whispered, Now I don't feel him at all… I don't… I can't feel him…” A cold chill ran down Shido's spine. If Ginji could not feel his partner—his other half—then there was no telling what fate had befallen the brunette. Shido forgot to tell himself not to care as he grabbed the blond's arm and resumed their dash in what he could only hope was the right direction. November rain had never felt so cold in his life.

 

 

 

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Himiko opened her eyes to find herself standing in the corner of a room she thought she would never see again. Finally able to move her body once again, she reached out and braced an arm against the wall as the familiar scent of cigarettes and oddly comforting spices invaded her senses. Yellowing walls glowed with the first rays of reddish sun that pushed through the shuttered windows. It was dawn, then, she decided. It was exactly as she remembered it, and the realization caused the subdued anger and hatred that had been momentarily calmed in her heart to flare once again.

 

The anger grew tenfold when she looked to the large bed in another corner of the room to see Midou lying on his side once again. Yamato sat in a chair that she distantly remembered as being one from her room, and watched what Himiko could only assume was a sleeping Ban. His back was turned to her so the girl could not tell if he was alive, let alone asleep. She could see the face of her brother, however, and the dream of finally seeing Yamato alive once again—even if only in a dream—was enough to draw her closer to the scene.

 

As she stepped closer to the bed, she saw that Midou was in fact alive. His body moved ever so slightly, but it was enough for Himiko to temporarily dismiss the image of the broken, bloody, lifeless Ban from the previous vision. With the dismissal came another surge of hatred, reminding her why she had confronted and fought Midou in the first place.

 

The murderer had the nerve to try and confuse her with these lies! The compassionate expression on her brother's face as he gazed down at the boy from his seat beside the bed made Himiko want to scream. She wanted to run to her brother and shake him, to tell him to get rid of the bastard while he still could! She wanted to attack the Jagan master now while his guard was down—show Yamato the truth about him before the snake could charm his way into their lives with his strange, subtle accent or roguish charm.

 

Her desire for blood and vengeance melted into confusion almost as quickly as it had arisen, as she stepped up beside her brother by the bed. So Midou hadn't killed himself off in this illusion. His bare, trembling shoulders were visible from this side of the bed, and Himiko held her breath as her brother tentatively put out a hand as if to brush a stray wisp of brown hair behind Ban's ear. The hand hovered mere inches away from actual contact. Ban, looking smaller and more vulnerable than she ever remembered seeing him, was trying to reach out to grab the hand that never made contact. Pain showed clearly in his too-bright eyes, and Himiko remembered the moments of agony she experienced in her body only moments ago in Midou's earlier illusion.

 

…When Yamato pulled his hand away and settled back in his chair with a sad sigh, the coldness set into Himiko's heart as well. She was sure that her body, left back on the streets of Shinjuku, must be crying. Although she wasn't sure if the tears were hers or not. Maybe it was just the rain.

 

The room and everything in it was suddenly gone, replaced by a rapid fire of scenes and images that swirled around Himiko like a vortex. She took a quick moment to curse herself for voluntarily entering the mind of the obviously psychotic Midou Ban before the force of the nightmare swept her off her feet. Floating adrift at the mercy of the Evil Eye, Himiko wondered if even Midou Ban was at the mercy of his own mind.

 

An image of Ban's introduction to Himiko flashed by. He flashed a cocky grin and made a sarcastic remark, but she wasn't distracted this second time around from the finger-shaped bruises along his neck…

 

Their first retrieval mission… Yamato had let her try out her latest poison, and when it accidentally exploded, Ban laughed hysterically the whole way home. Yamato called them immature kids. Why hadn't she noticed that subtle wink to Midou before?

 

A new city, a new apartment. Ban cooked one night, and actually smiled a real smile when Yamato asked for seconds. She had been denied any more food because she had caught the look and laughed saying he was going soft. She couldn't remember seeing him smile like that again.

 

Ban returned to their temporary home after a three week absence. Himiko hadn't noticed how tense her brother had been until Midou came strolling in one night. By the sudden happiness that slipped past Yamato's calm mask, Himiko had almost expected her brother to glomp the arrogant bastard. But he merely nodded to Midou and turned to make some coffee. Ban looked lost for a moment before he wandered over to her and stole a pocky from her box.

 

 

The images came faster and Himiko's eyes stung with the effort to keep up. Or maybe her body really was crying somewhere. She hoped to any gods that might be listening that the visions were lies, created by the demented mind of her brother's killer, and not true memories. She didn't think she could handle anymore. Her heart was going to explode.

 

 

Yamato passing Ban in the hall of their tiny house in Osaka. A spare glance as their shoulders accidentally touch.

 

Ban standing in a doorway, watching Yamato toss in a fitful sleep on his bed.

 

Banged up and bloody after a hard retrieval. Ban refusing help from Yamato. Shoving Himiko away when she reaches for his shoulder. Exhausted and cold. “Leave me alone, Hi-chan.”

 

Ban and Yamato lying on her brother's bed. Inches apart but not touching. “Himiko will be home soon.”

“Yea, I know.” Neither moves, but the room suddenly feels unbearably somber.

 

Cigarette smoke drifting into a dark night sky, glowing embers illuminating two drawn faces.

 

“I'm a curse, you know.”

“I know. So am I.”

 

An infuriating smirk. An uncaring shrug. Purple glasses pushed up high. Green hair darker than hers blowing in a light wind.

 

Aimless chords from two guitars drifting down the hall in the middle of the night.

 

 

Himiko reeled at the visions. Ban and Yamato were hardly so close back then… were they? Ban was barely with them for a year, and was often gone when he was. He was like an extra brother that happened to wander in from time to time and annoy her, or pick a fight with Yamato. What was the bastard trying to pull--?

 

Suddenly the images froze back on the bedroom. The illusion around her began to shake, and she could tell that Midou was struggling to stop it—to build the black walls back up around her. Around her brother. Around himself. But it was already too late, Himiko recognized every detail about the room, this day. Yamato appeared, struggling for breath, alone in the room, and Himiko began to wish she had never wanted to see this. Tears poured down her face and her ragged breathing subconsciously synced with that of her brother. This is where the blood would come. Where even the master of nightmares and illusions could not cover up what her had done. This is where she would see the true colors of Midou Ban and his heartless soul. She would see her brother die at the hands of a fraud. The tears were almost blinding and she wished she had a way out. She didn't want to see it anymore…

 

But it was too late, because there was Midou, walking into the room. She remembered that. Ban had just made fun of her cooking again, and wandered off.

 

Himiko felt sick to her stomach.

 

Yamato glanced up at Ban as he slid into the room. “Still fighting, I see?” he asked, his voice strained.

 

Himiko looked on, and fully expected the brunette to turn and viciously strike her brother when it became obvious he had noticed the weakness in his voice. She held her breath and wished to god she could turn away. The vision began to shudder again—dimming as if Midou was trying to shut out the memory once again.

 

“What's wrong, Yama?” the younger Ban asked. His voice was wrong. Himiko had never heard it so quiet—so concerned. Why didn't her brother looked phased?

 

Yamato clenched at his chest, and looking on Himiko thought she would die herself. “Don't try to pretend like you give a shit about him, Midou!” she cried out to the illusion Ban. “Stop pretending!” she screamed in hatred, but the scene playing out before her was completely unaffected.

 

“Ban, listen to me.”

Ban took a hasty step forward at the desperate tone. “Yamato what's going on?” His brows drew together as he watched the elder Kudo sibling battling with himself. Himiko, too, frowned. She had never considered that her brother was ill or injured when Midou killed him. What game was the Jagan master playing? Ban flinched and tensed violently when Yamoato's hand shot out to grab the front of his shirt. Yamato pulled Ban's face down to his level where he had suddenly sagged to the ground.

 

The words were hushed and Himiko found herself involuntarily drawn closer to the dreaded scene to hear. “Take… care of Himiko… okay?” Yamato ground out, determined in his stare through Midou's glasses. Midou looked stunned.

 

“Yamato, what the fuck…?” Ban looked torn between pulling away and drawing closer. Himiko mind froze up. Her heart stopped. Just what the hell was going on? What WAS this?

 

Yamato pulled harder so that Ban's nose pressed against his. “I can't hold it off anymore...” Ban's eyes widened and he shook his head quickly but Yamato wouldn't relent. “Promise me, Ban. That when her turn comes… you'll help her. Promise… me that you'll be there for her…”

 

“You can help her yourself `cause you're not going anywhere, you here me?” Ban growled out in desperation. “Now snap out of it, you asshole! You wouldn't leave Himiko behind like that, would you?! Snap out of it!” His voice wavered as he sunk to his knees before the fallen Kudo.

 

Himiko stood, numb and unable to move. What was this? What did this have to do with her? What did Yamato mean by “when her turn comes” ? What was he talking about? And just what was going on here? This was all wrong! She was sure her body, wherever it was, had stopped breathing. What was this?! Midou had killed her brother. Had disappeared and left her alone because he was a heartless bastard. He had killed her brother in cold blood like the cold-blooded murderer he was. And she had spent three long and horribly painful years storing up her hatred for an explosion—had spent the last four rainy days drowning in her despair and her need to take revenge on such a monstrous demon of a man who had dared to betray her trust.

 

So when she watched as Yamato's pained eyes softened at Midou, and shaking hands gently cupped the boy's face, Himiko felt the past three years of her life crumbling away…

 

“I'm sorry… Ban.”

 

… And when she watched Ban slam his fists into the bedroom floor instead of into her brother, and lift glassy, begging eyes up to meet her brother's, Himiko felt a truth break through an illusion she was living in for the past three years of her life…

 

 

“You're stronger than this, idiot. Don't be so stupid,” a small, young voice croaked, but Ban already knew it was a lost cause. Yamato seized up before him, pain exploding in his features and frame.

“Promise me, Ban,” Yamato forced out.

“I promise. I'll help her, when she needs it,” was whispered in return. The room was suddenly cast in shadows, swarming and cutting out the light.

Yamato shuddered and pulled himself into the lone chair by the bed, leaving Ban kneeling on the floor. “…Promise me, Ban.”

“I already promised you! Don't say it aga—”

“Promise that you'll… forgive me…” The shadows crawled forward, almost upon him.

“Yama… wha—”

“I'm sorry, Ban… that I never…” A darkness descended on him and Yamato gasped out in pain for the first time. “SHIT. Ban, I need you to kill me! PLEASE, Ban!”

 

 

Himiko's jaw dropped. Tears began anew as she watched her brother beg for death. She tried to close her eyes, but the scene played out even across the darkness of her closed lids. This wasn't how it was supposed to go. There wasn't supposed to be something wrong with her brother! He wasn't supposed to be giving up! Midou should have plunged his hand into his heart upon first sight. Then her mission would have been clear! It was what she needed, what she'd been counting on—preparing herself for!

 

 

Ban was on his feet in an instant, backing away even as he yelled out at Yamato, “What the hell?! There's no way! Don't you dare do this, Yama!” He was shaking his head violently, eyes obviously clenched tightly closed even behind dark glasses. Yamato looked up at him, and as if sensing the gaze Ban pulled off his sunglasses to stare directly into Kudo Yamato's eyes.

“I'm sorry, Ban… I'm so sorry I didn't…”

Ban cut him off as he marched up to Yamato and shook him—albeit gently—by the shoulders. “Don't.. don't you dare leave Himiko like this…” His voice broke. “Don't leave me alone, Yama… Don't make me do this. I WON'T.” Yamato lifted his head and pressed his lips to Ban's in the lightest of touches. The walls of the bedroom shook.

“You have to, Ban! Please!” The darkness grew and clawed at Yamato's body. “Do it. Do it now! Remember your promise… and remember… that I love y—” His muscles froze. His eyes flashed a deep red. “BAN!”

A harsh sob resounded in the room, and in a flash of blood Midou Ban killed Yamato. The shadows dissipated as if they'd never been there. The dawn sun filtered in through the windows, painting the room orange. Kudo Yamato was dead.

 

Himiko's sobs fell silent in the room. She fell back against the far wall of the room, as far away from her brother's lifeless body and the bloodstained Midou Ban. Her head was spinning. This was it. This is what happened. She wished she had never left her dark apartment that morning. She preferred the hollow, lifeless feeling that had swallowed her heart for three years, to the overflow of confusing emotion and turmoil that buried her right now.

 

She thought the nightmare would be over. She thought that she would die herself if it didn't end. But it wasn't her nightmare, and it wasn't over yet.

 

 

 

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The rain was almost letting up. Shido only knew this because he actually saw Ginji pull to a stop this time. If his heart hadn't been pounding so hard he might have taken the time to consider this the first good sign of the day. If his head wasn't still ringing with regret and inexplicable worry, he may have taken the time to breath. But when Ginji's form erupted in sparks and head snapped to the left, he didn't question it and took off once again at full speed beside his former emperor.

 

“We're close, Shido-kun,” Ginji somehow managed to get out between pants. The blond was completely focused on the figurative light at the end of the tunnel that was his partner. “If Ban-chan is okay,” he huffed, “You better,” pant “not make him sad.”

 

“As if I didn't feel bad enough,” Shido grumbled to himself. His hearing picked up a strange wail on the wind, and he abruptly veered to the left. He vaguely registered Ginji skidding and shifting to follow him, which was confirmed when he heard “BAN-CHAN!!” ring out from behind.

 

And sure enough, just barely visible four blocks down in the rain, was Himiko and Ban. Both were standing as far as he could tell—Himiko gripping Ban's face, her shoulders frozen rigid.

 

Three blocks. Ginji was lagging further behind. Shido glanced back briefly to see him watching the pair up ahead with a hand rubbing at his chest. The sparks trickling over his body were becoming more pronounced. Great, Shido thought, This can't be a good sign.

 

Two blocks. He began to see that Midou was swaying on his feet; began to hear that the wail on the wind was a cry from Himiko.

 

One block. The girl's grip loosened. Midou was falling. Shido's eyes widened to the point of being painful, and before he knew it, he had reached the feuding pair—had caught the limp Midou Ban in his arms. Ginji's frantic calls suddenly seemed so far away. Shido slid to his knees on the gravelly pavement, bringing the frighteningly light body of Midou with him. What the hell was he doing? An image of Ban sitting so silently in the Honky Tonk, small and rumpled, flashed through his mind. Heartless.

 

 

 

 

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Himiko stood heavily against her brother's room. God, how she'd grown to hate this room. She thought she would be sick if Midou's nightmare didn't take her brother's corpse away. But he didn't he didn't move. Ban stood perfectly still, exactly where he had been for many long minutes, staring down at his bloodied right hand. From her spot against the wall, Himiko could see Ban's face. She didn't remember that three years ago. Of course, back then she only had eyes for the lifeless body of her only family.

 

Today, however, she saw Midou's expression and wanted to die herself. Himiko was familiar with Ban's characteristic blank stare. But the empty, horrifying blankness in the face of the brunette standing over her brother was stunning. The tears that collected behind slipping purple glass were terrifying. This was no smirking, soulless monster that she had convinced herself of. And she hated. Whether she hated Ban for allowing her to dwell on the lie or herself for falling so easily into it, she wasn't sure.

 

Oh, why wouldn't the nightmare end. Where was the end of the Jagan's one minute? Why wouldn't Ban move?

 

And then the door to the room burst open, and Himiko saw a younger version of herself burst through, soaked from the rain that had suddenly started outside on her way home from school. She had to cover her ears against her own scream of horror. But when, moments later, her screams turned into violent, heart-wrenching shouts and curses, there was no way to block them out. They echoed and repeated and intensified as the room shrunk in on itself, walls shaking.

 

Her younger self disappeared, but the voice remained and surrounded herself and Ban who was yet to move.

 

WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!?!

YOU FUCKING MONSTER!

CURSED!

SNAKE!

HOW COULD YOU?! WE TRUSTED YOU!!!

DEVIL!

GET OUT!!!! GET OUT AND DON'T YOU DARE COME BACK!!!

 

NO! DON'T LOOK AT HIM! HOW DARE YOU LOOK AT HIM!!

MONSTER!!!

MONSTER!!!!!

 

The words wouldn't stop. The screeching broken record of tearing, biting, horrible words grew louder and louder. Himiko disappeared. A deceptively small hand tore into a dark chest. Over. And over.

 

I'LL KILL YOU, YOU DEMON!!!

 

A harsh sob reverberating in the room just before blood sprayed and shadows withdrew. A quick Snakebite. Over. And Over.

 

WE TRUSTED YOU!!! MONSTER!!!

 

More voices joined her own. Faces flashed in rapid succession. Numerous Beltliners. Random thugs. Terrified enemies. Victims of the Snakebite and Jagan.

 

YOU DESERVE TO DIE, DEMON!

SON OF THE DEVIL!!

MONSTER!!!

 

Emishi. Kazuki. Makubex. Gen.

 

DANGEROUS…

COLD HEARTED…

STAY AWAY FROM HIM, GINJI!

 

Ginji.

 

Don't be sad, Ban-chan…

 

Himiko's breath caught. Yamato.

 

Don't forget… I love y—

 

Shido's face appeared and Himiko didn't know what to think.

 

Heartless…

Pretending…

Heartless…

Heartless.

 

And then everything faded back to black. First Ban. Then the room. Then the voices. And the nightmare was over.

 

 

 

 

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The rain had stopped. Everything had stopped, it seemed. Strangely accustomed to the stillness on the street, Shido nearly jumped to his feet at the hand that came to rest on his shoulder. He tore his gaze away from the Snake Bastard in his arms to look up and see Ginji, looking solemnly at his unconscious partner. The blond was still absently rubbing at his chest over his heart. Shido raised a questioning eyebrow.

 

“I can feel him again,” Ginji whispered. “I… I was so scared that he…” he seemed to drop off at that thought and looked over Shido's shoulder. The Beast Master followed his look to see Kudo Himiko—he had forgotten she was there—awake and staring down at Ban.

 

“I…” she murmured, before she too began to sway. Ginji caught her swiftly. With one last glance at his partner, draped across Shido's lap, he turned and headed back towards the Honky Tonk. Shido stood effortlessly with Midou's arm draped across his shoulders. He turned and only then noticed that Ban's eyes were open and unfocused, staring at nothing.

 

“Oi, Midou…” Shido began, but thought better of it and followed after Ginji. Better to check on Ginji, the girl, and Ban all secure in the café. Better to confront his guilt and worry within closed walls, where his animal friends wouldn't hear and intervene.

 

Better to apologize when Midou was actually capable of listening. One glance at the cold, blank face of the Jagan master told him that he wasn't sure when that would be. And that he wasn't sure he was ready to find out what the hell happened today, on the anniversary of Kudo Yamato's death.

 

But somehow, one glance also told him that something was wrong with him… He had found the Snake Bastard for Ginji, like he meant to. But the knot in his stomach did not loosen. Shido quickened his pace as much as he could without forcefully dragging the unresponsive Midou with him. He had to get to the Honky Tonk. Had to get Midou back to Ginji, surely that would help? Had to keep moving or his mind would catch up to him, and he was sure he'd feel a lot worse.

 

Hell of a day, he thought to himself. He bit the inside of his cheek, cursing himself with everything he had, for not staying home today.

 

Midou Ban just made everything SO complicated. He was surprised to find himself oddly warmed by the thought.

 

Definitely should have stayed in bed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

TBC.

 

 

 

 

 

Author's Note: Okay this REALLY took longer than I meant it to… but I had to get that all out, with Himiko, or it would fester in my head and the story would seem like it was missing something to me. This is as far as I can go right now though, I think I'm about to pass out like Himiko, or go zombie like Ban. I'm trying hard to get back on track.

 

READ AND REVIEW!!! Pleeeeeeease! Thanks in advance to anyone who's stuck through this story for me! More soon as I can… FINALLY some REAL Shido x Ban moments. Or at least a one-sided Shido -> Ban for the next chapter. We'll see. Let me know what you think!!!!!