Weiss Kreuz Fan Fiction ❯ The Hope Diamond ❯ Kudoh - 12 ( Chapter 12 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Name: Androgene

Website: http://www.angelfire.com/space/noir13

Email: androgene@lycos.com

Title: The Hope Diamond (Book Two): Kudoh - Twelve to Sixteen, and Interlude

Summary: A forbidden love grows between an assassin and the cursed Gem. Will they live happily ever after or is their love doomed from the beginning? YohjixAya/Ran.

Category: AU, fantasy, drama, angst, action, yaoi, shounen-ai

Rating: NC-17

Warning: Lime alert. Yohji-angst ahead. Major spoilers for the Riot episode

Disclaimer: All characters belong to their creators. WeiB Kreuz™ is created by Takehito Koyasu and Project WeiB. I don't own them and I don't profit from using these characters.


Kudoh

The apartment looked more like a pigsty than a living abode for someone. Clothes were strewed all over the place; there was a daunting stack of dirty plates in the sink and the bin was overflowing with empty takeout cartons. Discarded beer cans and cigarette butts littered everywhere.

But what bothered Birman the most was the aura of grief and desolation that clung to every corner of the apartment. It permeated the walls, the furniture, lingered in the clothes and air, in a heavy oppressive cloud that threatened to either send her running to save her sanity or be drowned in the black quicksand of emotion. It was at times like these that Birman wished that her empathy had an 'off' switch.

Manx,she thought crossly, you owe me big time for this.

She muttered a spell under her breath, enforcing her own emotional shields with magical ones, before proceeding to find the source of the despairing grief.

The master bedroom was in an even worse state than the living room. Right in the middle of the mess, sprawled across the huge bed of crumpled sheets, with a cigarette between his lips, was the man Birman had came looking for.

"Yohji Kudoh?"

The man showed no indication that he was even aware of her presence.

She went closer to the bed, lips pressed into a thin line. Having to carefully pick her way through the sea of carelessly thrown clothes and whatnot, and consciously keeping the grief at bay, Birman wasn't exactly very patient when she finally reached the bed.

"Wake up," she said curtly.

Dull leaf-green eyes slowly drifted open. Despite herself, Birman couldn't help but wince inwardly at the look of pain and guilt in those eyes as he gazed at her.

When Yohji finally spoke, it was in a very weary and lifeless voice. "Go away."

"I've traveled a long way to speak to you, Kudoh. I'm not going to leave without getting what I came for."

"Sorry. Can't help you. Yohji & Asuka PI Agency is closed indefinitely. Go find someone else to bother."

"I'm not here to hire a private detective."

"Then go away."

"Your little run-in with Riot had attracted my boss's attention," Birman continued doggedly. "I've been sent to recruit you."

"Then you've wasted a trip." Yohji turned his gaze to the ceiling. Bitter self-loathing was evident in his voice. "Tell your boss it's a mistake to recruit a useless asshole like me."

Privately, Birman had to agree with him. Nothing she had seen so far about the man seemed to justify why Persia was so anxious to get his hands on. But she was just one of his many assistants and Persia kept his own counsel. All she was told was that Kudoh must be recruited at all costs.

Even drowning in his blackest depression, the distinctive click of a gun being primed caught his attention. Yohji looked back at the woman, disinterestedly staring up at the silver barrel of the gun, uncaring about the fact that it was pointed straight at his head.

"If you're going to kill me, spare me the suspense."

"Is that what your dead lover wants?"

The sudden flash of emotion in those otherwise dull empty green eyes was encouraging, to say the least.

"I have no qualms about killing you," Birman said casually. "After all, you may be right. My boss does not need a useless asshole. And I'm not the one who has a lover's death on his conscience. Dying like this, well, it's a pity she died for nothing."

"Shut up," Yohji grated. Glaring at Birman, he half-rose from his bed, feeling the urge to lash out at someone. "What the hell do you know of my pain?"

"More than other people."

Leaf-green eyes narrowed in realization. "You're an empath."

"Among other things."

"What the hell do you want?"

"Be my dog or die."

A long tense silence descended. At that moment, Birman wondered if Yohji would really ask her to kill him. If he were in so much pain that he couldn't get his life right again, then death would be preferable.

In the end, Yohji slowly reached up and pushed her gun aside. "Fine, I'll be your dog. Whatever that's left of me, anyway."

"Good."

* * *

Nearly four years later, Yohji stood in front of Asuka's grave and had to marvel at the absence of the grief that crippled him so badly in the past. It was strange, not feeling that pain that twisted at his heart and put a lump in his throat, not feeling the guilt that ate away at his mind, strange to feel hope again.

He got down to a knee before Asuka's modest tombstone and placed a huge bouquet of white and tiger lilies before the black marble slab. "Asuka, I've come to ask for your blessing. I met this man some months ago and I fell in love with him. He made me feel things I thought I'd never feel again after your death. He made me feel like I'm worth something."

Yohji paused and then asked softly, "Are you jealous, Asuka? Somehow I don't think so. Somehow, I have this feeling you'll be egging me on to make him mine. But that's the problem. He's been claimed already. He can't love freely, not without fear of punishment to his loved one. We have to meet in secret, like some criminals. I want to free him from his chains, Asuka. Hell, I promise to free him. I just don't know how."

"That's why I'm here. If you are watching over me, Asuka, please give me your blessing." He closed his eyes and rested his forehead against the cold marble slab. "Ran…he is my second chance. I don't think I'll get a third. I-I want to do right by him, something I have failed to do for you. For that I need all the help I can get."

Yohji fell silent. He stayed in that position for a long moment and rose to his feet. He pressed two fingers to his lips and placed the kiss to the tombstone.

"Ja ne, Asuka. If there's a chance, I'll bring him to meet you. I think you'll like him."


Chapter Twelve

For a summer day in June, the weather was surprisingly cool. The citizens of Magnopolis took advantage of the unexpected relief to take a break, abandoning work in favor of enjoying the wonderful coolness. Though it was still in the middle of a working day, Southbank Park was more crowded than usual.

The unusual increase in people loitering in the park made Ran nervous. It was hard for him to maintain his calm façade among strangers, hard for him not to betray the skittishness he felt whenever someone he didn't know got too close to him. Hell, anyone who obliviously got within six feet of him made him jumpy. In the end, he retreated deeper into the small grove of trees, where Yohji had comforted him on a cold black night so long ago, hoping to find some refuge.

In the dappled shade of the towering trees, Ran heaved a small sigh of relief. Here, the soothing sound of rustling leaves muffled the noise of the crowd outside, shielding him within a tiny haven of blessed quietness. He leaned back against a trunk and gazed up at the gently swaying branches, finally allowing himself to relax somewhat.

He hated crowds with a passion but had tolerated them because his position required it. And he wasn't used to crowds either. No, Ran silently amended, he wasn't used to crowds where he was just another faceless person. He was used to crowds where he was more or less at the center of attention, the kinds of crowds that automatically put him on his guard, wary and careful not to let his icy mask slip. It was easier to stay alert and watch out for threats in that kind of crowds.

But this sort of everyday crowd of ordinary people unaware of his disguised presence threatened to lull him into a false sense of security. He disliked that, distrustful of the seductive lure that could leave him vulnerable. It was too easy to fool himself into thinking he was just another anonymous face, able to just disappear into the crowd. The tempting thought warred with survival instincts honed keenly over ten years, resulting in Ran feeling tense and nervous as he waited for his secret date.

Dating.

It was another reason why he felt less than calm.

Even though he had two weeks to get used to the idea, it was still new and exciting to him. Not unheard of but new all the same. Being of the shy quiet type, Ran never really dabbled in dating before That Day. And after That Day, Ran lost all chances of leading a normal life again.

For ten years, he was used to being treated as a rare and priceless trophy, an object of power and beauty, and to his master, a tool and a toy in bed. At first, he found the knowledge humiliating and degrading. It took him a long time before he gave up his pride and quit fighting to assert his individuality, a long time before he finally resigned himself to his fate.

Then he met Yohji and his world was rapidly turned upside-down. Yohji was the one person who did not regard him as an object but rather as a person. It honestly caught him off guard, Yohji's attention. It was also unnerving and stressful. He didn't know how to deal with the blond's flirting behavior, had forgotten how to react to his simple overtures of human interaction. Ten years of being alone and not trusting anyone made Ran paranoid and suspicious of anyone who seemed to want to get close to him.

All his doubts about Yohji's sincerity vanished on that night in the park however. On the night his life finally got too much for him and he sought the deserted darkness of the park to give in to his pain. When Yohji made the effort to chase him down and comfort him, prevented him from falling apart, Ran finally realized that the blond was concerned for him, genuinely concerned for him - not the Blood Diamond, but Ran.

Yohji's attraction to him as a person was so simple and honest a reason that it floored him.

Ran didn't understand how could anyone be attracted to him; he didn't understand why Yohji would want to spend so much time and effort on someone he hardly knew. Yohji's attraction frightened him; his own reaction scared him even more because he found himself longing for the comfort and assurances Yohji wanted to give. Ran wanted to reach out and accept the warmth Yohji offered; he wanted Yohji to help him to remember what it was like to be human.

Yohji was the only one brave enough, daring enough, to coax him to live again.

Ran smiled faintly, remembering the time they spent together over the last two weeks. He had been alive, more importantly, felt human again. He didn't mind the fact he had to sneak out from Aya's ward daily to secretly meet Yohji. He knew he was putting his sister's life in danger but even that knowledge was not enough to stop him.

He needed to see Yohji, needed the blond's loving reassuring presence like he needed wild magic to live. He was addicted to Yohji, totally, hopelessly addicted to the blond Techno-Mage who was supposed to be his enemy, so much so that tolerating Takatori's touch was becoming a torture. Everyday now, he oscillated from giddy happiness in Yohji's presence to revulsion and fear when he returned to Takatori's side. It was so difficult to hide his newfound 'alive-ness' and joy from his master, yet he must do so to protect Yohji.

It was incredibly stressful to live each day like this, yet he would not end it.

It was the only thing that gave him hope for the future.

"Ran?"

The ageless redhead turned, brightening at the sight of the lanky blond standing some distance away. "Yohji!"

Yohji chuckled softly as he found himself being hugged tightly by the smaller man. "Ease up, Ran. I need to breath." Despite his words, the blond folded his arms about Ran's shirt-clad shoulders and back, holding the redhead close.

"Sorry," Ran mumbled against his chest, loosening his grip around Yohji's waist.

"Nothing to be sorry about." Yohji tenderly stroked the crimson silk of Ran's hair. "The crowd got to you, eh?"

Ran nodded, a quick movement that brushed the top of his head against Yohji's chin. "I hate crowds." He pulled back to gaze up at Yohji's face, drinking in the sensual handsomeness of his face, the warm affection in the leaf-green eyes. God, the blond was truly something special. And Ran was humbled by the fact that he - a cursed, unclean monstrous being - was the sole recipient of Yohji's tender loving attention.

"I miss you," he said softly.

"So do I," Yohji replied, planting a soft kiss on his lips. "Come on. There's something I want to do with you."

"What is it?"

Yohji placed a finger against his lips, verdant green eyes glittering mysteriously. "You'll know when we get there."

Ran smiled softly at him. If he were free, he would go anywhere Yohji asked him to, just as long as the blond was by his side. "All right."

Their secret hideaway was not far from Southbank Park.

To be more precise, it was one of Yohji's personal safe houses scattered throughout Magnopolis. Each of them in Weiss has their own safe houses, kept secret from others just in case they needed to disappear and hide without others being able to find them.

Yohji maintained one near the park, a small apartment rented under an alias from a landlady who never intruded in her tenants' businesses. He had the safe house for years, even before he joined Weiss, and he was rather fond of it, making it into a proper home where he could just come and crash alone without worrying about being found. Yet he didn't find it difficult to reveal the location of this safe house. He did tell Ran where the flower shop was, in the hopes he would like to visit someday. But Ran never took him up on that offer, leery of meeting his fellow assassins.

This safe house became a safe and practical choice, for the two secret lovers who needed privacy to freely express their emotions. It was close to the park and the hospital, giving Ran enough time to sneak back to the hospital and the limousine that came daily to fetch him home.

In this tiny apartment, they could be alone with each other, away from the scrutinizing world and the troubles outside, no matter how brief their time together might be.

Ran took off his shoes at the hallway as Yohji shut the door behind them. "So what is it you want to show me?"

"It's right this way." Yohji gently guided the smaller man down the hallway and into the kitchen, right to the counter top where a few unopened packages were sitting.

Ran stared down at the packages and cans of raw food, still not getting it. "Yohji, what are you trying to show me?"

"Well," Yohji reached around from behind him and picked up the box of spaghetti, "we have ate out so often that I figure it's time we should try making something for ourselves. I went to the supermarket earlier and got the stuff we need to make a really great pasta lunch."

"You want to cook?"

"With you, if that's all right." Yohji stepped around to Ran's side, sensing the sudden apprehension in the redhead. "What's wrong, Ran?"

"…"

"Tell me."

"…I can't cook," Ran admitted in an embarrassed tone.

"It's all right. I can't cook very well either." Yohji smiled and pressed a tender kiss to his temple. Ran, when embarrassed, he discovered was really cute, with that pink blush across the bridge of his nose and cheeks. "At the very worst, we just blow up the kitchen."

Ran laughed at that flippant reply. "What will the landlady do to you?"

"Hell if I care," Yohji shrugged carelessly. "I bought a recipe book, so we should manage just fine. Now lessee, is tomato puree the same thing as tomato paste?"

Ran sweatdropped.

Somehow he had a feeling that cooking was going to be a disaster.

* * *

In the end, it didn't turned out as badly as Ran thought it would, much to his relief. At least they didn't blow up the kitchen but they did left behind a hell of a mess that he wasn't looking forward to cleaning up.

He cautiously poked at the plate of spaghetti with a fork, trying to decide whether it was safe to eat or not. Some parts of the spaghetti were burned (how did Yohji managed to burn the spaghetti?) but on the whole, it looked eatable. He looked up from his contemplation when arms snaked around his waist from behind.

"Well?" Yohji asked, peering over his shoulder at the fruit of their efforts. "What are you waiting for?"

"For you to take the first bite."

"You're kidding, right?"

"No." Ran gravely twirled a small bit of the spaghetti onto the fork and guided it to Yohji's mouth. "You forgot I don't eat."

Yohji rolled his eyes but obligingly accepted the bite. "Didn't stop you from eating out with me."

"Don't talk with your mouth full," Ran admonished lightly. He turned around to get a better view of Yohji's expression. "Well? How does it taste?"

"Not bad for our first try."

"Really?"

Yohji took the fork from him and picked up a bite, lifting it to Ran's mouth. "Here, you try."

Slowly, Ran chewed the small mouthful of spaghetti. One fine red brow lifted, surprised. "It's quite good."

"Told cha." Yohji carried the plate over to the dining table where two glasses and a bottle of wine were waiting.

"Shouldn't we split that into two plates first?" Ran asked, following him to the table.

"We can share." Yohji sat down and pulled the redhead into his lap, curling an arm around his waist and hip. With his free hand, he picked up the fork and reached for the spaghetti. "It's more fun this way, don't you think?" he grinned.

Ran just rolled his eyes. "You just enjoy having me on your lap."

"Guilty as charged."

Yohji gestured briefly to the bottle of wine and muttered briefly under his breath. Ran watched as the bottle of wine lifted itself and deftly poured red wine into the two wine glasses before settling back on the table.

"Flagrant use of magic," Ran chided with a smile.

"Either that or getting up to pour the wine. I happened to be very comfortable where I am." Yohji lifted the fork to Ran. "Now, open wide."

"Hn." Obligingly, Ran allowed Yohji to feed him before taking the fork for his turn.

It was so idyllic, so normal, what they were doing. Simple romantic bonding, activities they should be doing openly and without fear of repercussions, not like some furtive criminals. It was brief moments of normality like these that gave Ran strength to go on. For Yohji had a way of easing his fears and worries without saying anything, a certain touch that made him feel less…tainted, less unworthy.

Made him feel like he, Ran, was genuinely the most precious treasure in Yohji's world.

Ran took a sip of the red wine. Cupping Yohji's chin in one hand, he tilted the blond's face up and kissed him, nudging the soft lips to open in order to pour the wine into the blond's mouth. Under his hand, Ran felt the strong throat moved as Yohji swallowed. Next thing he knew, Yohji reached up and grasped his head, slanting their mouths together for a better fit as he changed the contact into a proper kiss.

Ran loved the way Yohji kissed, how Yohji teased his lips to open wider and the solid warmth of his tongue plundering the warm depths of his mouth, coaxing him to respond and kiss back. Yohji's kiss drove him wild, scattered whatever thoughts he had, and made his body quiver and his groin ached. His eyes fell shut and he circled his arms around Yohji's neck, kissing the blond back with all the passion he had in him. He shivered as he felt callused hands slipping under his shirt to firmly explore his chest and back, stroking the ribbed line of his spine up and down.

They finally broke the kiss.

Ran's head fell back as Yohji planted hot kisses down the smooth column of his throat, nipping and licking all his sensitive spots. The redhead moaned aloud as Yohji fastened his teeth in the junction where his neck and shoulder met and bit. The sudden burst of pain/pleasure shot through him like a bolt of lightning, sapped the strength from his limbs, and he melted against the blond, clinging to him for support.

"Ran…" Yohji grasped his chin, green eyes smoldering with barely restrained desire. "God, how I want you."

He kissed the redhead hard again, driven by his overwhelming need and passion. Ran submitted beautifully under his onslaught, so pliant and responsive that he inflamed Yohji further, threatening to dissolve whatever little control he possessed and succumb to the desire to claim this siren creature.

The realization jolted Yohji out of his lust-induced haze. With a mighty effort, he broke off the kiss and buried his face in Ran's neck, trying desperately to regain his control. His chest heaved as he panted harshly for each breath but otherwise Yohji was still as he hugged the equally passion-dazed redhead in his lap.

Ran was a boneless mess of aroused sexual desire and thrumming nerves, the heavy cloud of lust fogging his mind slowly dissipating. His skin remained keenly sensitive to Yohji's hands under his shirt, the warm rapid breaths against his neck, making him shiver. There was a burning ache in his loins, making his jeans uncomfortably small, and a second hard budge digging into his outer thigh. Somewhere in his daze, he was amazed at how fast things got out of control.

"Sorry," Yohji managed to say at last, in a voice rough with suppressed desire.

Shakily, Ran wrapped his arms around the strong lanky body. "It's okay."

"No, it's not."

Ran didn't say otherwise. Deep inside, he knew Yohji was right.

It was torture being this close to each other. His body ached constantly with the desire to just take Yohji to his bed. He wanted Yohji so badly, desired the blond so much. He yearned to feel the blond's hands on him, stroking him, arousing him with every caress and heated kiss; he wanted Yohji's mouth on his cock, Yohji's erection inside him, taking him. It got so bad sometimes he had to fight the urge to simply drag Yohji over to the bed and just do it, and he knew Yohji wouldn't be able to resist such persuasion.

Yohji wanted him just as badly.

But they couldn't do it.

Ran was bonded to Takatori. Whatever he did or even thought, Takatori would know in an instant. Oh he had shields, but Ran did not know how effective his shields were. It was difficult enough hiding this relationship from his possessive master. Ran doubted he could hide the uncontrollable flare of feelings and sensations produced during lovemaking from Takatori just as well.

The night of stolen pleasure on Takatori's island was the only exception. His master had been too drunk and unconscious to sense what he did. But there was no way such an opportunity would ever present itself to them again. They could only settle for touches and kisses, skirting the edge of disaster and temptation, unable to satisfy their needs and desires in the manner they wanted most.

Yohji finally lifted his head, verdant-green eyes full of turbulent emotions. "It's not fair."

Ran managed a tiny sad smile. "No, it isn't."

Yohji pulled him close for another kiss, this time slow and sweet. "I'm so tempted to just throw caution to the wind and make love to you."

Ran gasped as the fingers under his shirt found a nipple and toyed with it, sending quivering sparks of pleasure shooting through his body. "But my sister…your friends…Yohji…ohhh…"

If this continued further, Ran realized they would definitely end up together in bed. With an effort, he clamped a hand on the teasing fingers beneath his shirt. He clumsily extricated himself from Yohji's embrace, moving on shaky legs to lean against the counter. Behind him, Yohji slumped in his chair, fighting the urge to drag Ran back to him and ravish him thoroughly.

Labored breathings filled the kitchen for a long while as both men fought to calm their arousals.

Ran bowed his head, eyes closing to shut out the sight of the white countertop. Times like these, he wanted to scream and take his frustration out on the nearest object. Always, Takatori's hold on him hung like a shadow over them. He hated it, hated this sorry state of affair they were in because of him.

Yohji didn't deserve this -

Violet eyes flew open involuntarily as arms hugged him again from behind.

"I'm sorry. It's just that -" Yohji tightened his embrace around the smaller man and confessed, "The thought of not having you, the thought of you having to return to his side every time we part…it hurts. I want you to be free; I want you to be mine."

Yohji laughed bitterly. "Listen to me, I'm so greedy that I don't know what I want anymore."

Ran twisted around in his arms. "You're not being greedy." He gently touched his cheek. "I don't want to return to him anymore than you want me to. I don't like being in his presence."

"Ran…" Yohji molded the slim form of his love to his body; hugging Ran so tightly that he was sure the smaller man could not breathe. Ran simply embraced him back, needing the physical contact as much as he did. There, they remained for a long time, clinging to each other, trying to make the moment last for as long as possible.

But no matter how much they tried, time still flowed on.

"It's almost four," Yohji broke the serenity reluctantly.

Ran sighed. Their afternoon together was almost over.

"Tomorrow? Same time?"

Ran tensed, burying his face in the crook of Yohji's neck. "I can't. I have to do an…errand for Takatori."

Involuntarily, Yohji tightened his hold on the smaller man. "He's not going to make you kill for him again, is he?"

"It'll be all right, Yohji." Ran tried to reassure the blond but his words sounded hollow even to him.

"When can I see you again?"

"Probably two days later." He kissed Yohji's cheek.

Yohji turned his head quickly and caught Ran's mouth in a hard passionate kiss. "I'll be here waiting for you."

"I'll come back," Ran promised. Reluctantly, he pulled away from their embrace. "See you soon, Gorgeous."

"You too, Beautiful."

With a whisper of magic, Ran took a step sideways and vanished from the kitchen, leaving Yohji all alone in the apartment. His appetite gone, Yohji snagged the bottle of wine from the table and went into the living room. He leaned against the window, staring blankly at the people on the streets below, as he took a long dreg of the wine.

In all his years, Yohji never thought he would find himself in the position of a star-crossed lover. It was almost laughable, except it hurt like hell. Even the pain and guilt over Asuka's death paled in comparison to what they were going through now. And yet given a choice, Yohji wouldn't want it any other way, not if it meant he never get to meet Ran.

I'll make you happy, Ran. I'll free you. I promise.

* * *

It was a slow afternoon at the Koneko no Sumu Ie, a rarity given the flower shop's popularity with teenaged girls. It certainly gave both Ken Hidaka and Omi Tsukiyono lots of free time - time in which the former spent fidgeting at the workbench, trying to keep from pacing about in the shop.

"Will you stop drumming your fingers, Ken-kun?" Omi sighed. "The sound is driving me crazy."

With a start, Ken guiltily snatched his hand from the worktable. "Gomen."

"So what got into you?" Omi asked patiently. "You've been on the edge for the last couple of days."

"Nothing."

"Ken-kun."

Ken gulped at Omi's long drawn-out tone of suffering and exasperation. When Omi's patience is nearing his limit, it usually meant grilling time.

"Well?" Omi tapped a foot against the floor.

"It's Yohji," Ken confessed.

"Ah. He has been behaving rather strangely for last two weeks."

"Ever since we came back from Takatori's island," Ken frowned at the worktable.

"Well, he could be out having his daily fling." Omi said. "You know him."

"He doesn't go out anymore in the night."

"How do you know that?"

Ken rolled his eyes. "I'm the first to wake up in the morning. When I go down the hallway to the bathroom, I can usually smell the cigarette smoke and booze he brought back with him in the middle of the night. I don't smell that anymore."

"So maybe he quit his night life?"

"Yohji? Our resident playboy?"

Omi had to chuckle. "True. So do you think he's seeing someone?"

Ken looked troubled. "If he is, I hope he knows what he is doing. People like us…we have to be careful with whom we interact with."

"Ken-kun."

"It's just a thought, Omi." Ken replied defensively. "You know what they told us when we first joined Weiss. We can't have relationships with anyone outside the group. For our own safety."

"I'm sure Yohji knows what he's knowing."

"Does he?" Ken muttered under his breath.

"Pardon?"

"Never mind. I'm just being paranoid." Ken got up and stepped outside the shop to avoid Omi's questioning eyes.

Omi was right. Despite his lazy, incorrigible and devil-may-care attitude, Yohji was a responsible and disciplined man. He had to be, in order to be a Class-A Techno-Mage. He knew better than to put the group at risk. But sometimes, like now, Ken had to wonder. There was something else Ken hadn't told Omi, something he wasn't sure he should tell because it was really just a suspicion on his part. These days, when Yohji returned from wherever he went to, he brought back with him a scent that made Ken uneasy. The scent was faint, almost undetectable under the layers of soap and cologne. He missed it the first few times before finally detecting it. It was a vaguely familiar scent, one that nagged at Ken's memory. Try as he might, he couldn't remember where he had smelled that scent before and it bothered him.

"You look like you could use a smoke."

Ken looked up.

Yohji stood before him, wearing a green short-sleeved shirt and black jeans. A thin line of smoke curled from the cigarette between his lips and his eyes were hidden behind his ever-present shades.

"I don't smoke. Damn thing irritates my nose." Ken stood up and took a sniff. There, the elusive scent again, under the nearly overpowering smell of - "Have you been out drinking?"

"It's just a bottle, nothing more." Yohji smirked lazily and entered the shop. "Relax, I'm not even tipsy yet."

"Yohji-kun, no smoking in the shop." Ken heard Omi calling out from inside.

"Gomen, gomen. I'll put it out."

"Mou," Omi shook his head. "You are incorrigible."

"But that's part of my charm, Omittchi." Yohji flashed his most rakish grin at the kid. His 'cool' moment was ruined as he yelped and rubbed the back of his head. He turned and glared at Ken who had smacked him from behind. "What was that about?"

Ken simply gave him an evil smirk. "Help us close shop, flirt."

"Hai, hai."

Ken watched him covertly for the next couple of minutes. Yohji had been his usual flirtatious self except to Ken it seemed forced somehow. There had been a shadow in those green eyes when he glared at Ken, one that wasn't there before and Ken was hard pressed to pinpoint when it had appeared. He didn't think Omi noticed the change in Yohji though.

Ken was no fool. Despite Yohji's best efforts, he knew what Yohji had done. Both him and Omi were easily flustered by Yohji's flirting ways and it was an effective way to keep their attention diverted from what really bother him. If it weren't for his keen sense of smell, Ken would have never noticed the change that came over Yohji.

Yohji went to the entrance and was about to flip the 'open' sign to 'closed' when a slender female hand reached for the door handle. "Well, isn't it our last customer for the day." He remarked as he pulled open the door for Manx. "Welcome."

"Manx-san," Omi greeted with a smile. "How are you?"

"Doing quite well, thank you." The redhead lady smiled at them. "Close the shop, boys. I'll be waiting downstairs."

"What's the mission this time?" Ken asked as they seated themselves around the mission table in the basement minutes later.

"Have you read the papers lately?" Manx distributed the mission files. "About the bodies the police fished out of Atropos River?"

"Seven of them, right? Over the last two weeks." Ken flipped through his file. "All prostitutes. All bearing marks of being tortured and brutally murdered."

"Were any bodies found in the other two rivers?" Omi questioned.

"No. Only one of the Three Sisters was used as the dumping ground." Manx popped the videotape into the VCR. "Now pay attention, boys."

They listened to the briefing and instructions on the videotape.

It was a pretty straightforward case, Ken mused. Prostitutes have been turning up dead and investigations traced all of them back to 'missing person' cases. Further investigations linked them to an underground exclusive prostituting racket named Riot. From the corner of his eyes, Ken saw Yohji tensing at the sound of that name. He watched with covert interest as Yohji leaned forward ever so minutely in his chair, paying a great deal more attention to the video briefing than he ever did before. Ken wondered if Yohji had run-ins with Riot in his past.

It was quite possible.

Ken didn't know what Yohji did for a living before he joined Weiss. The unspoken rule when they joined Weiss was not to inquire too deeply into each other's past. It was respectful and unnecessary, simply because all of them were legally dead and what they were no longer matter. But living together under the same roof with Yohji hinted at a streetwise and possibly shady past.

"Sounds simple. Just go in and eliminate those three targets," Omi's observation pulled Ken from his contemplation. He paused thoughtfully for a moment and said, "What's the catch?"

"They are rather difficult to track," Manx admitted. "The manager is the easy one since he runs the day-to-day operations at Riot. But the boss and his secretary-wife, on the other hand, travel a lot. We don't know where they live and it proved difficult to keep track of their movements."

"But they have to visit Riot frequently to supervise the business," Ken pointed out.

"And the only way to know when they would visit if we have a copy of their schedule. Unfortunately only the manager has their schedule. One of you would have to go undercover to steal it."

"I'll go."

Everyone turned to stare at Yohji. The blond almost never volunteered for undercover assignment before, unless it was by order, claiming that it was too much work. This was certainly out of character for him.

"Yohji-kun…" Omi began hesitatingly. "Are you sure?"

"Really, Omi," Yohji drawled, "do you want to lose your virginity to a couple of strange women?"

"Yohji-kun!" Omi turned bright red. "But…there's always Ken."

"Oi!"

"I think our Kenken would nosebleed and faint before he could even get started," Yohji smirked at the brunette. "And I don't mean the mission."

Ken spluttered, trying to find some clever retort, but was too flustered to think of any. It was awful, the way Yohji teased them, really embarrassing too. But the blond was right. Out of the three of them, he was the only suitable candidate.

"So it's settled then," Manx said after he fell silent. She handed a second file to Yohji. "This is your cover, Balinese. You are due to go in tomorrow night, so study it thoroughly."

"Got it."

"Good luck, boys."