Gravitation Fan Fiction ❯ Yuki ❯ Attempt ( Chapter 13 )

Disclaimer: Gravitation does not belong to me. Ne, I doubt Gravitation would be as good if I owned it anyway. I'm not making any money out of this either and am just borrowing its characters….

A/N: An update finally! After thirteen days of cranking and all that! Amazing! I don't have much to say, except, I worked hard on this chapter and it was hard because of… many, many things. Problems at home and school prevented me from finishing earlier, but I'm kind of glad I didn't finish earlier - I like what it turned into… I'm not sure if you'll like it as much. I know my writing skills have been... declining lately. Must be the sheer amount of great fanfics lately! Me overshadowed! >_< Still unedited! I hope you all like this chapter! And, thanks to Pato San, Bunny-chan, and my best friends, Natalie and Marcya (Although she wanted me to finish this for different reasons *coughs*). Natalie, thanks for putting up with me! *glomps* I know I've been such a bother! >_<! Whining about it and all that! And, finally, "Thank You!" to all my readers and for patiently waiting for this chapter! I hope you like it! :-O! Happy reading :-D!

And Sketches:

http : // www . angelfire . com/games4/white_crescent/_04-20-2_musicfans.jpg - Yukito + Takumi

http : // www . angelfire . com/games4/white_crescent/_04-20-2_ruka_takumi_setsuna.jpg - Ruka, Takumi and Setsuna in one pic. It looks… weird. I tried…

Thirteen: Attempt

"All right, Eiri. Take care."

The words tumbled out of the NG President's lips in a bare whisper, sure the person on the other end of the line wouldn't bother to listen to mere goodbye from him. Tohma set the receiver back on its cradle and allowed his gaze to linger on its smooth black plastic casing before turning slowly, deliberately, to his wife who stood at the other end of the room, right beside the door, watching him in complete silence. Mika's face was somber, her eyebrows were knitted and her lips were pressed into a thin line. Worry for her younger brother was clear in her soft, brown eyes as she waited for her husband's impending announcement.

"He's alright." Tohma said finally after a long moment of silence and Mika heaved a sigh of relief before breaking into a small grateful smile. "I'm glad," she said simply and watched as her husband walked towards her, covering the distance between him and her in long, smooth strides. The NG President took the wife into his arms quietly, placing a hand over the small of his wife's back and another on his wife's head, and to anyone who could have witnessed the rare display of possession and affection, it would have seemed natural, or normal. But what went on between Seguchi Tohma and his wife, Uesugu Mika could hardly be classified 'normal'.

"Don't worry yourself too much." Tohma whispered softly, letting his lips curve into a genuine smile, as he ran his fingers through his wife's hair. Mika let out a quiet sigh as she buried herself deeper into her husband's embrace and nodded quietly in response to her husband's order. A few moments of silence, nowhere near uncomfortable or cold, passed between them and it was punctuated by the quiet sounds of Tohma removing a leather glove to run a bare hand through his wife's hair. Mika closed her eyes, well aware of the slender fingers combing through her hair leisurely, the nose pressed to her hair and the small, tiny movements the hand on the small of her back was making. They stayed like that for a few long minutes, relishing in each other's presence and warmth, until Tohma broke away from her abruptly.

Mika made no protest, understanding the reason to her husband's actions and watched him as he carefully put his gloves on. He gave her a meaningful look before smiling softly and distancing himself from her. "Your brother's outside." Tohma whispered calmly and just like every other time, he sounded as if he had known all along and was only waiting for the right time to announce what was fact. His wife gave him a firm nod and began smoothing the creases on her clothes, the only proof to what had taken place between them minutes ago really happened, with the palm of her hands.

The office was silent for a few long moments and when the door opened, true to Tohma's word, Tatsuha came waltzing in with an inquisitive look on his face. "And I thought I'd find you two smooching and all that for once-" Tatsuha looked at Mika once before turning to Tohma and then the wide empty space between husband and wife. "-I just remembered, I never see you two together any closer than this…." he trailed away and glowered at the empty space, wondering why whenever he was in their presence the same distance would be between the couple somehow, before turning to his blonde brother-in-law.

"So, where's Aniki?" Tatsuha asked, arching an eyebrow and placing a hand over his hip, "Or do we have to call for a search party now?" He added with a grin, wondering if his brother-in-law caught what he meant by that. Tohma was just unnaturally protective of Eiri and, though Tatsuha would never bring it up in his sister's presence, he wondered, sometimes, if there was something more to the 'attention' Tohma was showering his fair-headed brother-in-law.

Tohma smiled at Tatsuha, the calm, quiet and somewhat intimidating smile that had Tatsuha wondering if Tohma did catch his meaning. "He's fine. I was on the phone with him just now." The NG President explained before turning his wife who shook her head with a smile. "Eiri's learning, finally." Mika added to her husband's statement, her lips curving further into an amused smile that reminded Tatsuha of Tohma strongly. At times like this, he saw just why Mika and Tohma seemed to get along so well. Both of them had the words 'to be feared' written all over them and that was that.

"Sweet. Aren't you missing flooding his phone and mobile phone with lovely, caring messages until he relents and calls by now, Nee~san?" Tatsuha finished in a singsong tone, making sure he said 'Neesan' in the most annoyingly childish tone he could muster. His sister's eyebrows twitched and then her lips spread into a wide, albeit irritated, smile.

"Yes, Tatsuha, I am missing showering someone with love and affection." She paused and waited for the realization to dawn in to her brother before continuing slowly, her voice dripping heavily of sarcasm, "So, Tatsuha-chan, care to show your sister how much you love her by volunteering to be Eiri's replacement until he goes back to his old ways?"

"Uh." By the time Mika had finished, Tatsuha found himself a good few steps further from his older sister and he let out a nervous laugh, wondering how he got there without even noticing, and began shaking his hands in front of him. "No thanks. Heh… um. I'll zip up my mouth now….Zipping up!"

Mika folded her arms across her chest and donned a smile of satisfaction. "Good." She paused and then frowned at Tatsuha. "Well, aren't you leaving now?"

Tatsuha grinned sheepishly at her. "Ah, I still have to ask your husband for something-" He took a few steps forward so he was just an arm's length to the blonde, "Can you give me the address to the hotel Aniki's staying in?"

Tohma arched an eyebrow, "What do you want it for?"

Tatsuha scratched the back of his head and turned his head away from the couple. From the edge of his sight, he saw his sister's face creasing into a slight frown. "Oh, Ryu-chan asked me for it this morning. Told me I have to know."

Mika tilted her head to her left, watching her husband quietly.

"I don't really know why Ryu-chan wanted it, but oh…. I just need it? He was acting… weird last night." Tatsuha paused and then grinned before adding as an afterthought, "We went out partying last night. T'was fun…."

---

The sound of shoes thudding rapidly on the cement floors and shallow breathing echoed across the empty hallway. A blur of pink, black and gray, to anyone who was passing by, Juni came to a reckless, skidding halt that resembled the kind he did with his cars, when his destination came to view. He quickly picked himself up from the floor and ran up towards the door before sliding it open in one, smooth pull. He winced when loud music bombarded his ears and was rudely reminded of the fact that every single room in Campus Two were fitted with soundproof walls. He found himself intrigued though when he did not recognize the song being played.

Juni stepped into classroom, taking notice of the small group of fellow students that had gathered in the room, and closed the door behind with care. He figured he had come just as they were beginning the song since Takumi, who was standing in front of the microphone stand, eyes closed while his feet tapped out the beats to the song rapidly, wasn't singing yet. Ruka was displaying his abilities with the guitar while Yukito's hands moved across the keyboards about him expertly, fingers fleeting across the keys to form the impossibly fast background effects. The intro lasted only for a few more seconds and, a beat off the mark, Takumi began singing.

"kamitsuku OMAE no suhada ni ishiki wa tobasare

zawatsuita tsuki no umi de korogaru yume o miteta"

The raven-haired vocalist threw his head up, strands of his silky black hair with their beads of sweat glistening in the light overhead, for a quick intake of air before continuing, this time without missing a beat, though Juni guessed Yukito had something to do with that.

"sagasumi to amai omoi ni karada o nejireba

habikoru MORARU no BARANSU sore dake jya mono tarinai"

Ruka edged closer to the mic placed beside him and leaned forward to sing along with Takumi. His deeper voice added a certain depth and effect to Takumi's voice and Juni silently applauded Yukito who was definitely the genius behind this piece. Takumi's pieces never did have that kind of thoughtfulness in it and Ruka's style was too far off. Yukito paid attention to the tiniest detail-he paused, glancing up and taking notice of the tiny, tiny sharp sounds that were hardly noticeable-just like that.

"Just complex OMAE dake no

KOKORO mune ni hoshikute"

Ruka stepped away from the mic, concentrating once more on his guitar and the beat with his eyes closed and Takumi's voice became clearer, crispier once more.

"sabitsuita yume o-" Takumi's voice faltered and he stopped, both hands grasping the mic as he gasped for air. The music stopped abruptly. "Gomen." He whispered quietly after catching his breath and stepped away from the mic. Ruka walked up to him and wordlessly placed a hand on his shoulder before heading for the other end of the room and depositing his guitar beside his chair.

"Yeah, that's just alright-" Yukito said calmly, unplugging his keyboards and then walking over to where a few of his classmates were. "-You did your best, ne, it was just the third try, we can get it soon!" The brunette finished before turning to the fawning girl on one of the chairs and asking them if it was okay.

Juni ignored the completely biased comments coming from his female schoolmates in the room and strode towards the raven-haired vocalist, mindful of the state he was in. That was one of the problems when Yukito composed songs; neither Takumi nor Ruka could reach to whatever level he was composing it for. It almost made Juni wonder how Yukito could come up with a medium for his songs. Yukito, after all, had always professed he couldn't sing.

He tilted his head to his right and smiled when given a glimpse of Yukito laughing at something brunette student was telling him before snapping his head back to Takumi's direction.

"That was a new song," Juni commented, idly running a hand through his pink hair. He still wasn't so used to having pink hair, instead of his natural, midnight black, but figured if Shindou Shuichi could live with pink hair then so could he, for a few months at least. "Haven't heard that one, it's new, right?"

Takumi's lips curved into a quiet, calm smile. He shook his head quietly before fixing a few strands of sweat-beaded raven hair back into place. "Not really, but Ryu-chan's just finished the lyrics today… I was just… not prepared." Takumi trailed away and so did his gaze, coming to rest on somewhere outside the window. "….we had the tune done months earlier," Takumi finished after a while, with an oddly calm, yet melancholy smile.

Juni noted the tiny hint of disappointment in Takumi's obsidian eyes but decided not to comment on it. By bringing it up, with Yukito in the same room no less, he would be hurting more than just one person and he really didn't want to hurt Yukito's feelings indirectly. "Well, we have a month, ne, Takumi? When's your band performing anyway? The acts are on the final day, right?"

Takumi smiled, glancing up, thought for a while before replying to the shorter boy's query. "I think ours is on the twenty-second." He glanced back down and nodded then, "Yeah, it's on the twenty-second. You're performing on the twenty-third and twenty-fifth, right?"

Juni nodded, "Yeah, twenty-third for my solo then twenty-fifth for the Shindou Shuichi-tribute." He broke into a mischievous grin before wrinkling his nose. "I'm performing Shining Collection too… you know?"

A hand clamped over Juni's head, pushing him down. Ruka's cry of disbelief rang in his ears afterards, "What? Shining Collection? I thought you were going to do Bad Luck songs? Dammit, don't tell me Takagi reassigned everything again!"

"Gah-Ruka-calm down!" Juni cried as he struggled to break free from the older man's grasp. Ruka let go with a laugh and Juni stumbled away. The pink-haired boy snarled at Ruka before straightening his hair. "You freak, I'd kill Takagi myself if he did that again!-"

"Eh, I'd rather you not do that." Yukito cut in, walking closer to them, with a grin. "So, I have a feeling you're here for a reason, ne, Shu-chan, so what's that?"

"Yuki!" Juni launched himself towards Yukito only to crash into Ruka who stepped into the way before he could successfully perform a tackle-glomp on the brunette.

"Nah-uh, you're not glomping chibi. Not when I'm around, pervert."

"Ack! Ruka!" Juni stepped away from the wall Ruka had made out of his own body between Yukito and him and stuck a tongue out. "Jerk - anyway, guess what?"

Takumi shook his head and folded an arm across his chest, quietly chuckling, "What, Juni-kun?" As for dramatic impact, Juni just stood there grinning at them not-so-innocently, both of his hands on his back, and waited until they had an eyebrow arched.

"Uh… Shu-chan… Just what?" Yukito blinked when Juni's grin only widened. He tilted his head up and opened his mouth to speak, meanwhile the three of them waited earnestly.

"Nittle Grasper is going to perform on the Fes!" Juni blurted out and watched amusedly when Yukito's mouth opened. Before anyone could say anything though, he continued without missing a beat, "But!….. Under two conditions!" He held up two fingers and furrowed his eyebrows.

"One: We Yuki and me perform Shining Collection on the 25th! And Two-" He turned to Yukito and, ignoring Ruka, grabbed him by the wrist. "And Two-Yuki-chan does something for Ryuichi-sama!"

"What?!" Ruka cried in disbelief, pushing Juni away from Yukito who was staring, wide-eyed, at Juni. "And they agreed?"

Juni nodded enthusiastically, "Of course they agreed!" He turned to Takumi, smiling brightly, "That's why I'm here… Sakuma-san didn't say what he wanted Yuki to do… but… he's gonna tell you, so I'm here to get Yuki!"

"That's a bit harsh…" Takumi remarked quietly and Ruka slapped a hand over his forehead before muttering out loud, "Did they even give it a second thought? At all?"

"Ah… eh-" Yukito opened his mouth to say something but closed it again.

"I'm sure it's not gonna be much-" Juni cut in, stepping in between the three of them. "I swear, Sakuma-san said it himself!" He reassured them. "It's worth finding out…. For sure! Come on… Yukiii…"

Yukito gave Ruka and Takumi a look before sighing in resignation and nodding with a smile. "I guess, I mean… if it's too mu-" He was suddenly reminded of the lyrics and the man's words at the thought of it. Immediately, he cut himself off, "Wait, nothing's too much for me! I'll do it! Whatever it is…."

"Yesss!" The pink-haired teen did an arm-pump with his right arm before finally launching himself towards Yukito to give him a hug. When he pulled away, he looked into Yukito's eyes and asked quietly, "Oh… and are you performing tonight? It's Tuesday. Cyclone Check and Night, right? Are you going to perform that new song too?"

"I gue-"

"Yes, we're performing tonight, as usual, Shu-chan." Takumi answered for Yukito. The brunette craned his head to give Takumi a worried and questioning look which the raven-haired vocalist acknowledged with a gracious smile and nod which said 'I'm fine'. "And yes, we're performing that song… unless Yukito doesn't want t-"

"Of course I'd want to, Takumi!" Yukito said, nodding vigorously before turning to the redhead beside him. "You're fine with that too, right, Ruka?"

"'Course, chibi." Ruka said, smiling down at him before throwing Juni, who was smiling at him innocenly, a glare. "I'd reallly hate to see you rubbing off on chibi. I mean it."

Yukito laughed. "It's all set then! I bet Juni can't wait to hear our latest song completely…. I can't wait too!"

And quietly, he made a note to call Tohma to announce his latest breakthrough. He had no intention of telling him what brought the sudden inspiration about though and the man who had so rudely insulted his life. Deep down, however, he couldn't help but wonder what had happened to the man after he drove him to that hotel.

'Probably puking his guts out…. hopefully.' He thought grimly as Juni took his hand in his and began dragging him out of the classroom.

---

"So, you're telling me there's a chance that Shuichi's still alive?" Kyoko blurted out suddenly in the middle of Hiro's explanation. Hiro blinked at her for a few seconds before nodding slowly and continuing slowly. "Just a small chance," Hiro said quietly, looking away from the young woman whose face was only inches away from his, "K told us about the gun used. He said they probably used tranq darts on Shuichi to knock him off for a few hours and their intention might not have been to kill Shuichi off in the first place…"

"…And they probably staged the car crash too, made it seem like he died when… he's somewhere." Kyoko finished in soft whisper, cupping her chin as she stepped back from Hiro and sat herself on the foldable chair she'd placed in front of the sofa, where the Nittle Grasper guitarist sat with Melissa Rage.

"But-" Rage trailed away and waited for whatever else Hiro was telling them. Hiro's youthful face creased into a frown as he spoke.

"But, the question is, if the crash was just a cover for it all, like we all assume… Where's Shuichi been all this time if he is still alive? It's nearing two years and there's been nothing…." He breathed in sharply and leaned back on the sofa, folding his arms over his head before continuing, "So… Shuichi is as good as dead… unless by some miracle we find him. Wherever he is-"

"Wherever Tohma sent him, you mean?" Kyoko corrected him with a smile and stood from her seat before leaning forward and looming over Hiro and Rage, her hands on her hips.

"You're really think it's Seguchi Tohma, don't you, Kyoko?" Hiro questioned with a slightly intimidated look and the black-haired young woman smiled at him smugly.

"Well, Nakano-san, I do have proof to back my theory up. And Tohma has every reason to, to begin with." Kyoko explained before giving Rage a meaningful sideways glance. "I managed to track down the secretary working for Seguchi back then - I'm gonna meet her sometime next week or so… and…" she paused, "Interestingly, she was fired the day after the concert. Suspicious, ne?"

Rage nodded, frowning slightly, "And you tracked her down in just a day?"

"Yup! What do you think…" Kyoko grinned and continued in a drawl, "…Nakano-san?"

"I still think…" Hiro began, giving Kyoko an apologetic smile before turning serious once more, "… I have my own suspects….." He trailed away, mind wandering off to a certain Aizawa Taki and his cronies, his blood beginning to boil at the mere thought of the possibility that the ASK vocalist was behind it all. But he didn't want to tell them that because he knew they would ask why and he didn't want to talk bad about Shuichi any more. He finished his statement abruptly with a tone he hoped would put them off enough, "I seriously think it's someone I know behind this."

"Well, wanna bet?" Kyoko said in English with a laugh before leaning forward and placing a finger on her lips seductively. "I still think it's Seguchi Tohma, period. I know I can find a few who would agree with me, no questions asked…."

"And I can find mine." Hiro answered back to get even.

Kyoko smiled wider, her eyes narrowing into slits. She wasn't about to lose to Nakano Hiroshi but she respected his beliefs. She knew she was right though; she had looked into the possibilities and known and heard enough about Seguchi Tohma to be sure that it was him behind all this. Everything just clicked into place, though she was a bit curious about who Hiroshi suspected. He seemed sure himself and there was something underneath the suspicion Hiro held for whoever it was that bugged Kyoko. He had to have a good reason. He just had to.

She opened her mouth, determined to get a reason or two from the Nittle Grasper guitarist when the door behind her flew open and an unfamiliar, and yet familiar, voice filled through the room.

"I'm here - Ah... um… Sakuma-san, you wanted to see me?" that voice made Kyoko spin around and her mouth opened in a round 'oh' when she saw the brown-haired young man addressing the great Sakuma Ryuichi at the door. The inquiry she had for Hiro forgotten, she walked up to the young man and was surprised when the words just tumbled out of her mouth on their own accord.

"So you must be Fujiwara Yukito, ne?" When the brunette turned to her with the cutest smile she had ever seen, not only because he had the fact that he had a face that strongly reminded her of Shindou Shuichi but because it was, she was glad something within her had listened to Ryuichi's babbling earlier. She certainly she wasn't listening that attentively to pick up something as… minor, then, as this boy's name.

The brunette gave her a low bow and then nodded. "Yeah, I am…" He said a bit nervously, a hint of a blush staining his tanned cheeks, making her want to squeal in delight right then. She grinned at him before giving him a friendly slap on the back, "Work hard, Yuki-chan - I'm sure you'll do whatever it takes to do whatever Sakuma-san asks, right?"

By that time Ryuichi had walked up to them and was quiet watching them innocently with a cat-like grin on his lips. Yukito let out a brief nervous laugh before running a hand through his dyed brown hair and nodding. He gave a weak 'Hai' before turning to Ryuichi finally.

Kyoko watched as the Grasper vocalist led the brown-haired youth outside the room and wondered just how old the boy was. As she made her way back to where Hiro and Rage sat, she made a mental note to check out the bookstores nearby, with Fujiwara Yukito being as cute as he was, he was bound to be in a "bishie-album" or two issued by the school.

"So, where were we? Where's K anyway? I wanna ask him about things…."

---

Juni was frowning unhappily as he trailed behind Yukito and Kyoko, not liking the proximity between the black-haired girl and Yukito one bit. It so happened that after catching up on Yukito and Ryuichi conversing, and then joining them and re-entering the office with them, the girl just somehow latched herself, not quite literally, onto Yukito, like a piece of metal drawn to magnet. It irritated him. The worst was that, somehow, the Kyoko girl had managed to convince Yukito to touring her, and her redhead friend, around their school. Right now, they were just about finishing up, with Yukito touring Rage and Kyoko at the concert site.

"Jealous now, aren't you, Juni-kun?" Ruka whispered with a tiny laugh after elbowing him. The pink-haired teen shot the redhead who had somehow appeared beside him a venomous glare before rolling his eyes and blinking away, fixing his gaze on the pair in front of them.

"Of someone?" Ruka whispered with a tiny laugh before elbowing him again. The pink-haired teen shot the redhead who had somehow appeared beside him a venomous glare before rolling his eyes and blinking away, fixing his gaze on the pair in front of them.

"Of Yuki? No way." Juni muttered and Ruka laughed.

"I meant of the girl, Juni. Kyoko, was it?"

"Yeah, Kyoko. But it's still no." Juni mumbled darkly. Yukito, as always, was clueless. How he stayed faithful to his fiancée with all the girls, and boys, chasing after him and at the same time acting so clueless to anything romantically involved with him was a mystery to Juni. But it was delightful mystery.

"I feel sorry for you…." Ruka said solemnly and Juni would have believed his sincerity had he not broken into a fit of chuckling, "I'm so proud of chibi! Hah…"

"Shut u-" Juni caught a glimpse of something black on the stage in front of them. "Hey, Ruka… today's Tuesday right? Band Night…."

"Eh?"

"…You're playing tonight at the club and… Isn't ASK scheduled for practice today?" Juni glanced up before coming to a stop.

Takumi, who had by then caught up with them, stopped right beside Juni. "Why, what's wrong?"

"Nothing. Just curious." Juni paused and then laughed, "It's funny, every time Yukito tours someone, ASK's around. Neat coincidence, no?"

---

Aizawa Taki stopped singing, his hands still on the mic when he noticed the brunette in the distance. He recognized him to be the boy from yesterday, the one who looked like Shindou Shuichi and whose charms seemed to have won their Manager's favor. His lips disappeared into a thin line and for a few long moments he stared at the boy bitterly, watching him carefully in deep thought.

It wasn't until Ken asked him what was wrong that he snapped out of those deep thoughts. He apologized to Makkun for the stall and then gave them the signal to start over again. He managed to calm himself down considerably as he concentrated on the song Makkun and Ken were playing but when he saw their Manager, Nanae Kasumi, running up towards the group, visibly joyed, his eyebrows furrowed.

He pushed back the negative thoughts to the back of her mind and willed himself to concentrate on rehearsing for the Fes, but that didn't lessen the fact that he didn't like it.

---

"Ahh…Nanae-san, thanks for helping around with the tour and all-" Kyoko bowed and smiled at the Japanese beauty before her, humbled by the sheer grace the woman had displayed.

"It's a pleasure, Fukuyama-san." Nanae said with a smile before turning to Yukito and bowing at her. "And, Fujiwara-san," She began with a slightly amused laugh, "You're an exceptional tour guide!"

Yukito blushed immediately at the complimented directed at him and Juni elbowed him with a mischievous grin. "You just get the prettiest people to compliment you, ne, ne, Yuki?"

"Ah… it was… um…" Yukito bowed down lowly when he couldn't find the right words. "Thank you." He said simply and smiled back at Nanae who let out a quiet laugh.

"Well, I've got to be going now… my band must be looking for me everywhere….." she trailed away and placed a hand on her cheek, "I worry them too much… I'll be seeing you all." Nanae gave them a low bow and began walking away to the general direction of the main stage with Kyoko, who had been deep in thought, suddenly burst out in a cry.

"My bag! I think I left it on that speaker backstage! Stupid Me! I'll be right back, Yukito, Ruka, Takumi…. Juni…"

"Backstage?" Nanae inquired, spinning back around and arching an eyebrow. "Fujiwara-san took Fukuyama-san backstage?"

Yukito turned to her with a sheepish smile, "Yeah, she insisted… we were really fast though, just gave her a brief description of the place then lef-"

Ruka laughed and Takumi was shaking his head. "We aren't supposed to "frequent" there, except Takumi here." Ruka explained, jerking a thumb towards the raven-haired teen. "He's kinda in charge of this things-"

"My bag-okay… I'm leaving…. Be right back!" Kyoko said hurriedly, already jogging in place. Nanae stopped her just in time.

"Ah, Fukuyama-san, careful, okay? The man told me it was still dangerous there…" Nanae warned, before bowing at them once more and then walking away for real. Kyoko didn't bother to do anything to confirm that and instead began jogging away from them in a hurry.

Takumi frowned slightly and turned to Ruka before breaking into a smile, "I'll be waiting for you at the car."

Ruka nodded while Yukito called out, grinning. "Oh! Check on Rage-san for me, Takumi? I hope we didn't bore her… much!"

"I will!" Takumi called back, stopping just enough to answer Yukito's call.

---

Kyoko squinted in the darkness, trying to make out the various shapes in the room as she groped for the switch on the wall beside her. Quietly, she hoped she could spot her handbag sooner; it was red and sure to stand out in the darkness like this.

When she couldn't make the other lights work, for some reason, she grudgling began her search in the now-dimly lit room. It was a lot larger than she thought it would be when Yukito first showed her the place and now she wished she had pestered the brunette harder to touring her deeper into the place.

She went deeper into the room, noticing more and more how the light from the only overhead light she'd managed to switch on was rapidly becoming insufficient in her search for her handbag. She didn't even think she'd been in that part of the room before and yet, why couldn't she find her bag?

Grumbling about weird ghosts stealing her things while she wasn't watching just for the fun of it, she trudged deeper into the room and was overjoyed when she spotted something red in the immediate area.

"Aha! Found yo-Ow!" She let out a sharp cry when her foot got tangled into something. She heard something snap overhead and tilted her head up to view its source.

There was a loud sound of metal and wood crashing towards the floor with a sickening crash.

---

And now, response to the wonderful, wonderful, awesome reviewers from both Fanfiction.NET and Gurabiteshiyon.NET! … I admit, I like this part… lots. So drop reviews? ^_^ (I'm bad, aren't I?):

The Phantoms - *grins at CrimsonP and DarkP* Not saying :-P lol! But that's a good one. I think you're ganging up on Boogie-chan though… um… I can't say! *hides behind table* We'll.. um… see..? Depending on what muses think…

Pato San - That idea was my muses' idea. When I sat down and wrote, I just suddenly realized I wanted that in... since I couldn't get the original idea right. And it just flowed! XD Glad you liked though…. I still think you and Bunny-chan are better : 3 Can't wait to see Chapter 10 of War of Hearts! XD Hatori! Hatori! When we're done, maybe we'll see Hatori and Yukito together… lol. The Yuki-look-a-like and the Shuichi-look-a-like. Crossover, anyone? :-p

dark-kagome2 - lol! I'm scared now! But…. Yes, the last part is Shuichi : 3 I hope you liked that part. It complicates things more now, ne? And… I actually am working on another fic right now… *whistles* *hides*

rulerofthecows - I do that too when I read fanfics, laugh creepily, I mean. XD lol, I'd like to do that, except I think Freesia and Ai would have me shot first! O_o. But yeah, making Yukito Shu is sort of… tough now. Or maybe not. The last part isn't clear on whether it's a flashback or… present day, ne? : 3 We will find out Ryuichi's plan next chapter…. Muses wanted to keep it from readers first. XD Evil muses..

Bisexual Pygmy - Yes, plot thickens. XD Btw, I love your Omi. : 3

Animegirl9 - Yeah, I was reading The Opposite of Gravity finally after days and days of procrastination and when I read it, it just hit me I want to write evil, sinister Taki.... XD I'm gonna read Chapter 10 of yours after I upload this! Mwahah! I've been starving myself of much-needed Gravi fanfics.. But anyway! I hope you liked this! *glomps* It has Taki! Taki! XD

Lara - *glomps* Glad you love it :-D Here's update! XD Finally!

Dearest - The last part was… depends on what you think it is. It is about Shuichi though. You just don't know when it is….

Sozoku - I like being bothered about Yuki - so you didn't bother me :-D! Yeah! Exciting... XD I'm flattered…

baybhie - You reviewed! *pouts* Where's Phone Call 11? Lol. Anyway, probably that just might be Ryuichi's plan... or not. We'll find out! :-O Um... I work hard to make it interesting and hope every time I finish a chapter that it is? XD

Joan Mistress of Magic - Soon… Soon… Yukito will find out! Next chapter, hopefully then things will get a bit more... complicated? The last segment is Shuichi's, btw : 3

Star-chan - I hope not too confusing! Or in a bad way! XD You read through all 12 chapters? *dies* Thanks… I'm uber flattered now! XD Um…. *about the Yukito>>Shu part* :-O >_<

Bunny-chan - *glomps* Yes.. "O_O" XD I just love Shuichi too much to kill him, neee? XD

fangel - I know, I'm so mean to Yuki. I made him so miserable on V-day… bad me. And Yukito's mean to Yuki because Yuki was first mean to him... XD Unlike Shuichi, Yukito doesn't like being told mean things like that and he doesn't hesitate to fight back… XD

Nyoko - I'm glad you liked the Yukito/Eiri part! I was uber worried about that! I wanted to get it right and was seriously, seriously hoping I got it right! I hope you like this chapter! And the last part does have Shuichi so you're right :-D Though when that part is… is a mystery :-D

unknown -- Comparison with Yuki is much appreciated. *dies* I'm not so great… yet…. XD Hope you like this chapter….XD

And time to close this thing! First off, I am working on another fic! It's original though and on Fictionpress.net. Fallen Angels - (http : //www . fictionpress . com/read.php?storyid=1525002) Check it out sometime.. We like reviews… <3 Anyway, can't say much! I'm hurrying lots! Reading Sweet Nothings, Your Song, War of Hearts, The Opposite of Gravity, Je Suis Desole and Mother, May I? Right now! Wonderful stories. Check them out sometime :-D XD

^_^