Yami No Matsuei Fan Fiction ❯ The First Death ❯ Chapter 4: The Second Life, Part 2 ( Chapter 4 )

Summary: Post Kyoto arc, anime + manga through volume 9. Enma's decision. Tsuzuki's relationship with Hisoka furthers while Muraki adjusts to life in the Meifu.
Characters: Terazuma, Wakaba, Muraki, Oriya, Watari, Tatsumi, Hisoka, and Tsuzuki.

The Second Life, part 2.

|Hisoka|

I'm here.

For the first time in my life, I'm in an embrace that I want to be in. Tsuzuki's hands clasp me with a firm but gentle grip. My heart's racing, and I can feel the heat in my cheeks.

His warmth increases, bordering on fire.

Is it possible to drown in fire?

It's almost too much. Almost. I don't know what to do other than to hold him as close as possible, as if somehow I can meld the two of us together like the way his feelings permeate every fiber of my being.

I never thought it could be like this, his lips pressed against mine, his tongue seeking me out hungrily.

I don't want this to ever end.

Outside, the rain continues falling.

*******

|Terazuma|

Terazuma is sitting on the couch in a pair of shorts and a loose t-shirt with a tangled blanket half-shoved underneath him.

He's grumpy. Very, very grumpy. Last night, he slept on the couch. That in and of itself would have left him in a bad mood, but the weather makes it worse.

He hates the rain. The sound keeps him up all night, but that's the least of his worries. The moisture makes his Shikigami thrash with restlessness. He supposes that it's because of its fire nature. God knows the thing hates the idea of him swimming, much less the uncontrolled fall of rain. Thankfully, it's accustomed to the idea of him bathing regularly, or else there would be hell to pay.

On top of this, Terazuma feels like he's being too nice. He resolves to make Muraki sleep on the floor if Muraki gives him even the slightest reason to anger him. Terazuma then gets madder, because he realizes that he probably won't do that to Muraki, because he *is* too nice.

This is not turning out to be a good weekend.

Terazuma sighs, and decides that he really could use some tea. He stumbles into the kitchen blearily, and starts rummaging around for what he needs. If there's one thing about the modern era that he likes, it's those fancy air-pot water dispensers that keep water at the perfect temperature for making tea. Terazuma loves consumer electronics.

Terazuma wanders into the dining room with an empty mug and a pot of steeping tea. Someone's already beat him to it, though.

Of course, Terazuma thinks, who else? Muraki's already awake, sitting at the table with one of the more recent Shinigami policy manuals and a cup of hot water. He's wearing a light gray sweater over a white dress shirt, and a pair of dark gray pants. In his hand is a pen. He's taking notes on some loose sheets of paper. Terazuma can't tell exactly what he's writing, but the writing is very, very neat.

"Morning." Muraki looks up at Terazuma's greeting.

"Good morning, Terazuma-san." Muraki nods in acknowledgement. "Did you sleep well?"

"No." Terazuma scowls. Muraki begins to apologize, but Terazuma cuts him off. "It's fine, forget about it. It's not you. It's the rain. Keeps me up at night."

"Ah." Muraki nods, as Terazuma sits down, before returning to his notes.

"What's with the hot water?" Terazuma looks at Muraki quizzically.

"I couldn't find the tea," Muraki replies. "And I didn't want to wake you up." On the paper he circles a phrase, and then underlines it. Terazuma's wondering what he's up to.

"Right." Terazuma begins pouring himself some tea. It's just the way he likes it, not too strong, not too weak. "You want some of this?"

"Thank you." Muraki slides his cup forward.

"So how long have you been up?" Terazuma asks, as he pours the tea. Terazuma vaguely suspects that Muraki didn't sleep through the night.

"Only about an hour," Muraki replies, his writing hand pausing mid-sentence. "Since I've arrived in Meifu, I've had more sleep in one day than I've had in perhaps the last two or three years."

"What, you didn't sleep?"

"No, I slept. Only a few hours a night, usually. Never much more than that, I'm afraid."

"What kept you up?" Terazuma asks, before realizing what a potentially bad idea that question was. His lips tighten into a little frown.

"Work. Research. Tsuzuki. A variety of things, really," Muraki checks off points on his sheet of notes. "I had managed to keep myself busy."

"Yeah. Busy." Terazuma says with derision. He looks at Muraki, who's still scribbling quietly. "So, what are you doing? Studying?"

"Something like that," Muraki replies. "Ne, Terazuma-san. May I ask you a question?"

"Sure, go for it."

"I've seen three references to those robes that I was wearing yesterday, but nothing specific. What are they for?"

"They're for covering up your naked ass."

"Eh?" Muraki blinks.

"Nothing from Chijou comes with you after you die. That's why we all start over from scratch - they give us everything we need. So that thing you were wearing, it's the first and last thing you'll wear here. Afterwards, it all goes back to the sea."

"Sea?"

"Yeah. Fancy metaphor for 'you get recycled somewhere once Enma's through with you.' Sea. It's in the documentation."

"All right." Muraki taps his pen against his notes. "I suppose that explains why I don't have my earrings anymore," he says thoughtfully.

"Earrings? You wore earrings?" Terazuma raises an eyebrow. "Well, if you want them back, you better get a shovel and start digging, because you won't get them here." Terazuma finishes the last of his tea, before standing up and taking his leave.

"Ah." Muraki's face is emotionless.

Muraki sits at the table silently for a few minutes after Terazuma leaves. He's perfectly still, except for his hands. They tremble faintly.

Eventually, he finds his focus again, and writes down a few more words before setting the pen down. One of them is "Oriya."

*******

|Oriya|

Somewhere in Chijou, there's a place that you've been before.

It's in Kyoto, and a storm's reckoning holds the horizon hostage, darkening the sky over the green tops of the trees that sway in the growing wind.

Oriya looks up. It's starting to rain. For a moment he stands as the drops coalesce around him, dampening the stone path beneath his sandaled feet. The rain fills his eyes, blurring his vision.

"You." Oriya says it to the wind. The rest is lost to silence. Thoughtfully, he raises his hand and stares at the loose black sleeve of his kimono slithering around his wrist, drops of rain darkening the silk.

A little maid clatters over with an umbrella, and hands it to him deferentially before running back inside. Oriya opens it, the opaque oiled paper unfolding with a snap, shielding him from the sky. It's painted with a sprinkle of delicate peonies. They're violet.

Oriya doesn't think it's fair anymore.

He goes inside without a word.

*******

|Muraki|

"Hmm…Hajime and I only have two umbrellas…" Wakaba says to me, as she takes out two umbrellas from a closet. One's pink, and the other one's black. I imagine that I know which belongs to whom.

"Here, take this." Terazuma takes the black umbrella from Wakaba and slaps into my hand.

"Thank you," I reply. "But what about you?"

"Don't need it." Terazuma pulls on a long black trenchcoat, and tops it off with a slightly crumpled fedora. "I got a hat." He taps the rim of his hat, as if emphasizing the point.

"All right! Let's go!" Wakaba beams, as she steps through the door, umbrella in hand. She's wearing a bright yellow raincoat over her school uniform. It's quite appealing.

Today, we're going to the Summons Division for a little tour, while everyone is out of the office.

It's raining quite steadily now, as it has been since it started last night. We walk along the road that leads to the general administration office. It's chilly, the onset of autumn. Thankfully, Terazuma's offered me the use of one of his coats. It seems that the average Shinigami owns many of them.

I'm starting to think that perhaps black is the uniform.

Wakaba hums as she walks along, dodging puddles with a twirl of her pink umbrella. Terazuma, on the other hand, looks to be as amused as a cat dipped in water, his shoulders hunched and tense while he makes his way through the rain. It pools on his hat and has darkened the fabric of the coat over his shoulders. He looks to be quite miserable.

Such a shame, really. I suppose I'll have to do something about that.

I wait for the right moment. It doesn't take too long.

"Here." I hand my umbrella to Terazuma who takes it automatically. Before anyone can react, I gently lift the pink umbrella out of Wakaba's hand, and hold it over the two of us.

She startles, but a moment later flushes a bright red as she realizes our proximity. I smile down at her.

"Ne, Wakaba-san, will you walk with me?" It's time to apply the usual charms and graces. If it's anything I know for certain, it's my ability to garner attention from members of both sexes.

"S-s-sure, K-Kazutaka-san," she manages, as she nervously smoothes her dress with her hands.

"I couldn't stand to see Terazuma-san suffer so," I continue, blithely, as we stand with the rain tapping along the top of the umbrella above us. "It's really coming down."

Terazuma's standing with the umbrella in his hand. It's shaking hard. He's looking away, so I can't quite tell what he's thinking, but I'm sure I can guess.

I turn toward Wakaba, leaning down to her when I notice his attention is at the right place. I lift my hand to her face. "There's a raindrop." I brush my fingertips lightly against her flushed cheek.

"M-m-Muraki-san!" Wakaba's eyes are wide with surprise. I lean down just a bit closer, all the while watching Terazuma out of the corner of my eye. He's dropped the umbrella, and is standing in the rain, his hands quivering.

That's about when all hell broke loose.

The next thing I know, I'm dodging gouts of fire, rain sizzling around me in great bursts of vapor. Water's getting into my eyes, and between that, the steam, and the fact that whatever Terazuma's become makes attacks from a high vantage point in the sky, its membranous wings keeping it aloft. I'm starting to believe I'll be barbequed, momentarily. It's a singularly strange reminder of how much I dislike yakitori.

Well, it seems as if I'm going to have to fight back. The wild hair of the long-maned lion is wholly untouched by the falling rain, as if existing in a dimension just slightly outside of the reality that we're in. My mind races as fast as my feet, as I try to think up something that could stop the raging beast, but really, there's nothing serious I can do unless I've got a circle to draw power from. Of course I don't, because I scrubbed it off of the back porch last night.

This looks to be a bit of a problem.

"Hajime! Stop it! HAJIME!!!" Wakaba's voice cuts through with authority, as the massive form of the beast charges forth at me, its resounding roar a blast through the air, knocking me off my feet. Wakaba leaps out before me, ofuda in hand as the beast charges. At the very last second, with a resounding slap, she plants it firmly against its forehead.

A second later, Terazuma's sitting on the wet pavement, before us, thoroughly soaked through. He's also quite naked. Her ofuda flutters on his forehead, and he pulls it off, crumpling it in his hand.

"Hajime! What are you doing?" Wakaba demands, as she swiftly turns around to give Terazuma some privacy.

"It's the rain," Terazuma says irritably. "I couldn't stop it from coming out."

"Did the rain make Kuro-sama want to bite his head off head too?" Wakaba points at me.

"Er…about that…" Terazuma looks embarrassed. He shakes his head, as if to get his bearings.

"Impressive." I say, with an arch of my eyebrow. I stand up, brushing myself off. So much for umbrellas - we're all quite wet now.

"Shut up, pervert." Terazuma scowls up at me, as he covers what remains of his dignity with his hands. He's well built, that one.

"I was referring to your transformation." I reply smoothly, giving him one last glance.

"Right. Now stop looking so I can get dressed." Obediently, I comply, turning around.

After he's done, we continue walking toward the general administration building.

*******

|Hisoka|

It's strange to realize that nothing you've ever dreamt about can match reality.

Tsuzuki's mouth has a hint of sweetness to it.

It's stranger to think that I've never really dreamt about this, because the possibility was so remote that it seemed a kindness to pretend that nothing could ever happen.

Tsuzuki's touch is gentle but awkward, fumbling at times, sure at others. It's exactly who he is.

So what makes me who I am? I'm starting to not know anymore. Sometimes I'm me. Sometimes I'm Tsuzuki. It's all sort of blurry.

Tsuzuki impatiently pulls his shirt off, looking a little sheepish when he realizes that in his haste, he's tangled himself up in his buttons. I grin, and help him untangle himself. The shirt goes flying like a little white cloud, coming to rest against the floor beyond my fiend of vision.

He leans down, folding me within his arms again, his lips seeking the sensitive flesh of my throat. His mouth his hot against me. My arms move around him, seeking to pull him close, to bridge that gap between us…

/Gap/.

My fingers twine into his dark hair. It's like silk sliding beneath my fingertips. Or is it someone's fingers through my hair?

/Slide/.

My breath comes in little gasps. His tongue slips down my throat hungrily. My tongue touches…

/Slip/.

I can't tell who's feeling what anymore as I'm drowning in a sea of desire. I'm just a swimmer at the surface, looking down into the shadows of the deep water. The inky blackness only grows as my senses grow more captive to his touch. The darkness never seems to end…

And I'm getting dizzy looking down…

**

Fireflies. They're everywhere.

I've never seen this many before in my life. They fill the air around me, closing out the sky. It's like the stars surround me, flickering in and out of existence, signaling their glowing language of love.

But it's so dark here by myself.

In the black night full of stars, there's just me, and I'm all alone. But it's what's right.

After all, someone like me should have never exis…

**

I blink. Tsuzuki's staring at me, his hands tight around my shoulders. Little twinges of worry and fear dance along his fingers.

"Tsuzuki?" I'm all muddled and mixed up. I look up at him in confusion, trying to shake off the strange feeling.

"Hisoka? Can you hear me?"

"Eh?" I blink. "Of course I can hear you. What are you doing?"

Tsuzuki sighs in relief, his grip relaxing. "For a moment there…for a moment…" Upset swirls through him like the drag of an undertow. "You blanked out."

"Oh…I don't know what happened," I reply, rubbing my fingers against my forehead, trying to figure out what really just happened in my mind. "I saw something. I guess maybe my empathy went out of control for a moment."

"What did you see?"

"Fireflies." I think to myself, the image coming more clear in my mind. "It was really dark. Tsuzuki, I…"

Tsuzki's feelings snap close like the locking of a case. The rejection is like a splash of cold water against my face. It effectively ends the conversation. He unwinds himself from me, rolling out of bed.

"Tsuzuki?" I don't think he's ever closed himself off to me, not like this before. I can barely sense his emotions.

"It's nothing." His voice is dull and emotionless as he leaves the room.

A moment later, I can hear the sound of the shower running.

I get up. The bed's cold without him.

I'm so damn sick of this power. It's really pissing me off. The thought that letting go of myself for just one moment could cause me to accidentally hurt Tsuzuki makes me think that maybe I really did deserve being locked up. Because then I couldn't hurt anyone. Especially him.

I hate being reminded of that. I hate it so much.

Better go home. Better to be in an empty apartment than wonder how much misery I'm causing him. And don't think that I'm just imagining it or exaggerating things because I can feel it radiating from him, even from the other room. At least if I'm home, I can lock myself away from the world and pretend that nothing exists past those four walls.

Reality doesn't match up to any dreams, I guess. But unlike dreams, you can't exactly opt out of it.

I don't need any more dreams.

I grab my bag, and head out into the rain.

I'm sorry, Tsuzuki.

*******

|Watari|

It just gets better and better. Terazuma shivers in the main hallway just outside of the Summons Division wing, totally soaked through. He's waiting for Watari to let them in because they lock the place up on the weekends and both he and Wakaba managed to forget their keys. Wakaba and Muraki look equally miserable, dripping little puddles onto the stone floor. The former makes Terazuma want to get a blanket for her. The latter makes Terazuma want to buy a gun.

Finally, Watari manages to make his way over to the door to let them in.

"Hey!" Watari says brightly. As they enter, he does a double take at the sight of the bedraggled three.

"Yo." Terazuma raises his hand in greeting. Without another word, he makes his way through the office, heading toward the infirmary wing.

"Ah, Wakaba-chan…what happened?" Watari asks as Terazuma returns with a pile of towels. He hands one to Wakaba, and tosses the other at Muraki's face.

"Nothing." Terazuma says, while at the same time, Wakaba says "Just Kuro-chan."

"Oh, it's *that* nothing," Watari grins as his attention shifts to Muraki, who is hanging his coat up on a nearby chair. "Looks like we've got a newbie," Watari says with an excited gleam in his eye.

"Yeah," Terazuma replies, as he throws the towel around his shoulders, and begins rebuttoning the misaligned buttons on his shirt. "Hot off the grill. You want him, go nuts. Just be careful with this one." Terazuma says the last softly, the words meant only for Watari's hearing. "You of all people know what he was doing when he was alive." Terazuma gives Muraki a look that's tinged with suspicion.

"But he's one of us now." Watari blinks. "He's got a second chance."

"Not that crap again. First Kannuki, now you," Terazuma sighs. "Fine, you do whatever you want." Terazuma's voice returns to a normal volume. "I need a cigarette. Come on, Kannuki. I'll make you some tea." Terazuma stomps off into another room, Wakaba trailing behind him.

"So you're the famous Doctor Muraki," Watari looks at Muraki appraisingly, after the others have left.

"The one and only." Muraki replies, as he runs the towel through his hair. When he's done, he starts dabbing at his clothes with it, soaking up some of the excess water.

"We've never been properly introduced," Watari says, extending his hand. "I'm Watari Yutaka, resident scientist extraordinaire! This is my sidekick and companion, 003." A tiny owl peeks out from behind Watari's head, and hops onto his shoulder.

"Charmed." Muraki shakes his hand.

"Let's go to my lab and talk, shall we? I've got something boiling up," Watari says, giving the door to his lab anxious looks, as if expecting something to happen.

"Don't drink anything he gives you," came Terazuma's voice from the other room.

"Hajime-chan!" Wakaba's voice follows.

Muraki seems like he's about to say something, but he pauses, and wordlessly follows Watari into his lab.

"All right!" Watari begins rummaging through a few stacks of paper. "I know it's here…I just got it yester…okay, here we go. No, that's not it…Sit, sit. There's a chair under that pile of books, you can just put those on the ground. Sorry it's so cold in here, I sort of had a little accident this morning…wah, these aren't the papers, where are they…"

Muraki sits down and looks at the room around him, with a mildly surprised look on his face. Dozens of beakers, in all shapes, sizes, colors, and varying grades of cleanliness are lined up on a counters that go around nearly the entire room, with the exception of one wall which is taken up by a bookcase and a filing cabinet. There is a massive table in the center of the room that is covered in notebooks, manila filing folders, and loose paper.

In addition, all the windows are open, making the room feel particularly cold. Muraki shivers a little bit.

"Ah, let me close the windows…I guess most of the smell's gone." Watari chatters on. "Oh, 003 - mind getting that top latch? It's sticking again." A miniscule owl hoots softly and flutters up to the latch. Muraki watches it curiously, as it lands on the window latch. With a few hops, it pushes the latch into the down position, and Watari's able to close the window.

"Thank you!" Watari waves up at 003. 003 flies down in a spiraling glide, coming to rest on a pile of books, before tucking its head back under its wing.

"Interesting creature. Does this mean that there was a 001 and a 002?" Muraki asks.

"No. Just 003." Watari says cheerfully. "Okay! I found it!" Watari pulls a file out from underneath a pile of papers. Precariously, it seems as though for a moment, the entire stack's about to fall, but at the very last second, it stabilizes itself. Watari's lab is like a delicately balanced ecosystem.

Watari walks over toward Muraki, tucks the file under his arm, and begins moving books. A few moments later, another chair is revealed. Watari sits down, and opens the file while Muraki absently raises his hand to his face, as if to push up his glasses before realizing he's not wearing glasses anymore. He folds his hands in his lap.

Watari begins flipping through the file. "Ah, lucky day! I don't have to run any diagnostics! You must have gone through Enma himself for me to get this. Oh! That means more time to do my research!"

"Diagnostics?" Muraki asks.

"Sure, I usually give the newbies some tests, you know, the usual…a basic physical, bloodwork, DNA samples, MRI, CAT... Gives us some comparative data to work with if there's any problems in the future," Watari says, ticking off the points on his fingers. "It's just an expanded version of what they used to have. They add one for every new medical breakthrough in Chijou. It normally takes me hours and hours to process the data. Usually the only information we get is just a breakdown of the person's past, since the whole testing system's sort of a naturally occurring thing. But you must have gone through Enma's direct staff, so they included everything. I've only heard about that... Wah, even your ability summary! Luuuucky!"

Muraki nods, taking in the rush of information. "Mind if I have a look?"

"Sure!" Watari hands over the file. Muraki begins leafing through it.

"So anyway, Muraki, has Terazuma explained any of the Shinigami powers to you?"

"No, but I know of them. I've been going through the policy manuals," Muraki replies, as he continues going through the file. He pauses, momentarily on a page.

"Yeah, but that means you don't know how yet, do you?" Watari says, waggling his index finger at Muraki. "The manuals are one thing - application is a whole other story."

Satisfied, Muraki hands the file back to Watari. "Application. Does this mean I get flying lessons?"

"Just ask Terazuma," Watari grins. "But not today, unless you want another soaking."

Muraki nods. "I saw some codes listed next to my ability summary. Can you tell me what it means?"

"Eh? Oh, let me look." Watari searches through the file. "Ah ha! All right, let's see…seventy-three…" He shuffles through the pile of books next to his chair and digs out a battered looking booklet, which he opens and begins to compare with the file. "Hey, now that's a rare one. Looks like all the ones that are seventy-threes are strictly forbidden. The fifty-ones are contingent, and the elevens are review-only. Wow, I've never seen this many seventy-threes at the same time." Watari raises an eyebrow. "What exactly were you doing when you were alive?"

"I had my hobbies."

Watari let out a low whistle. "You're lucky you've got all these other spells and summons that are okay to use, because otherwise we'd have to train you from the ground up. That wouldn't be pretty, either, since it looks like your power fundamentals are based on a completely different system from the usual kind around here."

"What's the usual system?"

"Not counting Tatsumi, it's pretty much straight ofuda-based magic. You write your spells down or memorize them, and use the 'fuda as your focus. Very good and traditional stuff. Last year, I did some research on your powers after we got back from Kyoto because of the whole security breach thing, and it looks like yours is pretty much Western-based. So where'd you learn it?" Watari asks, sparkling with curiosity.

"The basics, I learned in New York, some time ago," Muraki replies, a bit hesitantly. "The rest is my own doing."

"That explains it! See, most of the stuff you're doing now is sort of this weird system of Western magic with a Japanese accent. It's got it's own flavor at this point. Pretty individualized stuff - most of the Shinigami here follow the same few paths, like Shikigami summons or ofuda. There's a few rarer ones, but most are all pretty much standard."

"I see." Muraki looks at the list. "What happens if I use any of these forbidden ones?" He taps the paper.

Watari winces. "Um. Bad things."

"How bad?" Muraki wonders.

"Well…you know, in ancient times, the role the ten kings was to refine and purify souls that had built up sins through their lives, right?"

"Yes, I've heard that legend."

"Does the phrase 'boiling lakes of blood' mean anything to you? Because they never got rid of those, even after we became a purely administrative unit."

"That…that's not so good." Muraki frowns.

"Nope. You really ought to memorize the forbidden list. Excuse me." Watari gets up, hands Muraki the file, and rushes over to a beaker that's quickly boiling over.

"I will."

"Wah!" Watari ducks as something in his lab explodes with a puff of smoke. "Sorry about that, 003! 003? Are you okay?!"

*******

|Muraki|

The Shinigami division office is quite unimpressive, for such powerful caretakers of the afterlife. After my meeting with Watari, we went around the office for a grand tour. It's surprisingly small and looks to verge on poverty, given the age of the office equipment and the look of the building upkeep.

It's a sad contrast to even the teaching hospital where I had interned when I was younger - even there, they had managed to keep up little amenities such as aquariums. Though I suppose those are standard to any medical facility. It will definitely be an adjustment, not working in a medical or research capacity.

Regardless, eventually, it came time for us to brave the outdoors again. Fortunately for Terazuma, Watari managed to equip him with a proper umbrella, so the morning's little experiment need no repeat. I'm not wholly certain whether it was my own doing that led him to transform, or if it was completely the fault of the rain as the official story goes, but I'll certainly keep it in mind not to anger him unduly.

As long as he gives me no reason to, that is. However, next time, I'll definitely be prepared.

Eye for an eye, as the saying goes. Ironic coming from one such as me. After all, I managed to lose my right eye once already. Ah well.

Outside, the rain continues, the distant roll of thunder filling the air as we trudge through the puddles.

We're nearly at Terazuma and Wakaba's residence. The rain comes down in sheets, obscuring the landscape, reducing objects into silhouettes.

That's when I see him.

*******

|Hisoka|

My hands.

In the rain that obscures my vision, catching on my eyelashes, getting into my eyes, I can barely see them. They're much too small, much too thin. Like the rest of me. I'm permanently a child, and I guess that it extends to my personality too.

I don't change. The world around me does. But not me.

Just rain. Think about the rain instead. It helps the grass grow. And no matter how much you trim it down or cut it down, the grass will keep growing, as long as there's sometimes rain.

If the grass can be grass, then why can't I be me?

I guess it's because there's no rain for me to help me grow. I just stay the same.

Don't get me wrong. I want to be a better person. I want to be a person who's worthy. A person who loves. But instead, I just watch the rain. Instead, I see fireflies that I shouldn't. Instead, I live with the endless loop of memory that takes me from the cell beneath the staircase to the pain on Tsuzuki's face.

I'm so tired.

Footsteps. Don't care. Just go away, please. I've closed up my senses to the world around me. I can't even tell if it's human anymore, much less what it's feeling. I just want this to stop.

Suddenly, the rain around me stops.

I look up, confused. And I'd run or scream or something, if I wasn't so shocked that I was frozen in place.

He's here. Muraki. And he's holding an umbrella over me. I'm too freaked out to even shake. The reality of his existence is like a slap in the face, knocking me out of my thoughts. The only thing I can think now is that I had better start getting my legs to work soon, or else…or…

"Here." He looks at me cautiously, as if wondering what my next move is. He shoves the umbrella at me, and I take it with no small amount of surprise.

"Wha…?" My mouth isn't working right.

"You'll catch cold that way." He straightens up, and walks briskly off. The brisk walk turns into a jog. I'm starting to think that I should have probed his mind or something, because if I didn't know better, he looked a little nervous.

A minute later, Terazuma and Wakaba come walking up.

"Hisoka-kun!" Wakaba comes flying over toward me. "What are you doing out here by yourself? You're soaked!"

"I-I-I…" I think I might have mentioned that the link between my brain and my mouth seems to have been fatally damaged in the last few moments.

"You're coming with us, young man!" Wakaba says firmly. Behind her, I can see Terazuma shrug.

"Ah…okay." I say hesitantly, allowing her to drag me along.

*******

|Terazuma|

"Just wonderful. My house is turning into a shelter for stray Shinigami," Terazuma mumbles around his cigarette. He opens his closet door, and starts rummaging. Before long, he comes out with a few items of clothes.

"All right kids. Dry clothes time." Terazuma says blandly as he walks out toward the entry, and hands a shirt and some pants to Hisoka. "Bathroom's down the hall next to my room. Gimme the wet stuff when you're done, and we'll toss it in the dryer or something. You too, Muraki."

Muraki looks at Hisoka suspiciously. Hisoka looks at Muraki suspiciously. They both appear to not want to be the first to go down the hall.

"You first." Muraki and Hisoka both say at the same time. They blink.

Terazuma scowls. "You're getting my floor wet…"

Awkwardly, as if trying very hard not to run into each other or look at each other, Hisoka and Muraki make their way down the hall. Muraki shuts the door to Terazuma's room quickly, just as Hisoka closes the bathroom door.

Terazuma looks heavenward, and mumbles something unintelligible under his breath before he lights up his cigarette. He wanders over to the living room and sits down on the sofa.

It's just too damn weird, Terazuma thinks. Too damn weird. He shakes his head.

Hisoka's the first to return. Terazuma's clothes are ridiculously large on him, to the point where he's basically omitted the pants, and has belted the oversized shirt around his waist. The shirt reaches down to nearly his knees. It almost looks like a dress. The overly long sleeves are rolled up.

"Don't even say it," Hisoka grimaces, as he walks over to where Terazuma is sitting. "I feel ridiculous."

"It's not that bad," Terazuma says, a little uncomfortably. He's all too aware of what happened last time with Hisoka. He tries thinking of other things. Like when Wakaba will be done getting cleaned up and come downstairs. They should make lunch.

"Where should I put this?" Hisoka asks, holding up a pile of completely wet clothes.

"Here, lemme take those," Terazuma says, and divests Hisoka of his wet gear. Terazuma walks back down the hall toward the laundry room, and pauses at his bedroom door. He knocks.

"Yo, Muraki. Got the clothes for the dryer?"

"One moment." Muraki's voice is muffled. He opens the door, and hands Terazuma the wet clothing. He's wearing the black suit again, this time with a dark blue shirt. He looks at Hisoka for a moment as if trying to come to a decision, and then decides to go back into Terazuma's room, closing the door behind him.

"Oh man." Hisoka blinks, once Terazuma's returned to his previous seat. "Tatsumi's gonna be pissed when he sees that."

"Yeah, no kidding." Terazuma says. "We should take bets to see how long murder-boy here is going to last. Tatsumi's clothes…" Terazuma shakes his head. "That Tatsumi is gonna blow his stack when he sees him."

"I was at the tailor's with Tsuzuki the same day Tatsumi was ordering those." Hisoka shivers. "I think he ordered it to replace a set that was messed up when that thing Watari was doing last week caught on fire and Tatsumi had to put it out."

"Heh, I remember that." Terazuma grins. He takes a long drag from his cigarette. His expression turns curious. "So hey, Kurosaki, why's that idiot partner of yours letting you wander around in the rain like that? I thought I heard that Tatsumi told him, no buts about it, to be making sure you take care of yourself." Terazuma's lips move downward in a little frown.

"Ah, that? Uh…" Hisoka looks away, uncomfortably. "I…I just thought I'd take a walk."

"Right." Terazuma "In the rain. Without an umbrella." Terazuma pauses for a moment, thinking. "Something wrong?" His voice has a hint of gentleness with the last words.

"N-no. Everything's fine. I just wasn't thinking."

"Yeah. That's been happening a lot today." Terazuma stubs out his cigarette into an ashtray. "Do me a favor, next time you see that useless partner of yours, tell him if he doesn't watch out for you, I'll personally go and kick his ass myself. You can't let your partner do dumb shit like that, all right? Take it from me, I've been working with Wakaba for more than twice as long as you've been alive and dead. You gotta watch out for each other."

"S-sure. I'll remember that." Hisoka says, looking down at his bare feet.

Terazuma's about to say more, but he decides against it. He stands up.

"All right, I'll be back. Gotta kick the kid out of my room so I can change. Got a little messed up earlier," Terazuma says by way of explanation.

"Okay." Hisoka fidgets uncomfortably when Terazuma leaves the room.

Moments later, Muraki comes and sits down across from Hisoka. It makes Hisoka nearly shake from fear. What he's not noticing, however, is that Muraki's sitting as far from Hisoka as physically possible while still being in the same room.

"Ah…Kurosaki-kun, is it?" Muraki says, uncomfortably.

"Y-yeah." Hisoka replies. Hisoka is somewhere in between wanting to run, and wanting to slap himself for stuttering so much today.

Muraki taps out a cigarette, and gestures. "Do you mind if I smoke?"

"G-go right for it." Hisoka forces himself not to shrink away. Don't show fear. He can smell fear.

"Thank you." Muraki lights up the cigarette, and takes a long drag. They sit like that for a minute, completely silent.

Hisoka lets his senses out just a little, to see if he can figure out what Muraki's feeling.

"Nervous?" He almost says the word out loud before he can control himself.

Muraki's anxiety comes off in little waves as he calmly smokes his cigarette, ignoring Hisoka studiously. It's nearly as good of an acting job as anything Tsuzuki can pull off, but not nearly good enough to fool an empath.

Hisoka thinks this is the oddest day he's ever had since he arrived in Meifu. That day was pretty strange too. He met a floating chicken who became his mentor and showed him the ropes.

Hisoka isn't sure what to think anymore. He looks perplexed.

Muraki casually smokes his cigarette, mentally counting to himself in English to keep appearing calm. He's looking at anything but Hisoka.

It's just too damn weird.

*******

|Hisoka|

The rest of the weekend passed without incident. After we had lunch and my clothes were dried, I went back to my apartment, and slept for most of the weekend. I guess we overestimated Muraki. At lunch, he seemed to alternate between being his old self, minus the threats part, and something a whole lot more fragile. I still can't quite believe it.

Damn, if I had known I could humble him like this, I should have tried killing him a whole lot earlier. Could have saved me a whole lot of trouble.

I guess they're right about the whole dying thing giving you a new perspective. I wouldn't know, myself. It didn't affect me as much as some of the others. Maybe it's because I was too young to know better, or because I had been so messed up before I died that anything was better than what my life had been like up to that point.

I guess it's because I never really lived until I died.

Oh well. I'm not going to make myself crazy trying to figure it out. I've got enough problems on my plate. But I can say that I think Terazuma's got Muraki sufficiently under his thumb to keep him out of Tsuzuki's way. Which is kind of neat, if you think about it. I mean, Terazuma can be scary with a capital S when he wants to be. Even worse than when Tsuzuki's really mad, but not as bad as Tatsumi.

Heh, that reminds me. I'm going to have to go in early on Monday just to see the look on Tatsumi's face when he rips Muraki a new one. That suit thing is going to be hysterical.

Well, at least, until Muraki gets assigned, it looks like Terazuma's going to keep a tight leash on him. Which would mean that he'd definitely be out of our range. Depending on the assignment, he could be almost permanently out-of-office.

That's what I'm hoping for. I'm going to start crossing every finger on my hand for that one. I should see if there's a shrine around here; I'll go pray for that every day if I have to.

So now it's Monday morning. It's way too early, and I don't feel like getting up, but I should, since my alarm's about to go off any minute.

Outside it's already insanely sunny. That's Meifu weather for you.

Tap tap. I rub my eyes, and roll out of bed. There's someone knocking on my door.

"Who the hell…" I mutter. Bet it's the landlord, wanting to do some repairs or something. I heard someone hammering a few minutes earlier, which is what woke me up.

It's Tsuzuki.

"Hey?" I blink.

"Hi." He says sheepishly. "Can I come in?"

"Sure." I'm still blinking. This can't be real. I mean, it's just past six-thirty in the morning on a Monday, and Tsuzuki's awake and on my doorstep. The unbelievable part is the awake part.

Actually, that's not totally true. He looks thrashed, like he hasn't slept in a few days. Jolts of guilt start dancing around my stomach.

"I have to get ready for work." I say dumbly. "But you can come in."

"All right." He takes off his shoes and sits down in the living room. I wander off to take a quick shower, brush my teeth, and get dressed. It's possibly the fastest shower in the history of mankind.

Fifteen minutes later, I come back. My hair's still wet, and strands of it are clinging to my neck. It's sort of annoying. I run my hand along my neck, trying to unstuck my hair.

"Sorry about that, Tsuzuki," I say when I return. "You want to go now?"

"Okay." Tsuzuki's misery is like a stone sinking in the ocean. It makes me feel awful. I shrink into myself to close off his feelings from my own. It makes things a little more bearable. Just a little.

"How was your weekend?" Tsuzuki asks me, as I lock the door to my apartment.

"Weird." We walk down the stairs and out the building.

"What happened?" He winces at the words. I pretend not to notice.

"I ran into Muraki. At Terazuma and Wakaba's place."

"Muraki?!" Tsuzuki nearly jumps when I say the words. His jolt of worry and concern nearly knocks me over.

"Calm down, baka. Terazuma's got him under control." I say irritably, my heart still pounding a little from his shock. "Actually, I think he's a little bit afraid of me. Probably since I did kill him and all."

"Muraki? Afraid?" Tsuzuki blinks. "Is that possible?"

"Yeah. I don't think you can fake that either."

"That's…strange." Tsuzuki says, pondering the thought. "Maybe that means you'll be safe.

"We'll see. I'm more worried about you."

We walk quietly for a few minutes.

"Tsuzuki, I-" I say, while at the same time, he says, "Hisoka, I-"

We look at each other. We've stopped near a park. A bird sings brightly in the tree above us. The shadows of the leaves dance around our feet.

"Tsuzuki. I-I'm sorry about earlier." I say, miserably, before he can continue. I don't want to know what he's got to say. All I can think of are the worst possibilities. "I didn't mean to pry."

"No…it's all right, Hisoka." Tsuzuki says, looking at his feet. "I shouldn't have…shouldn't have done that. Just walk away, that is. You've told me yourself that your powers can pick up things that you don't mean to see."

"That doesn't mean I like what I am." I shove my hands in my pockets.

"You can't be anything other than what you are. Just like I can't help being what I am." Tsuzuki reaches out, and pulls me into his arms. I look up, startled. The sunlight glints off the green leaves of the tree above me.

"I'm sorry Hisoka." He buries his face in my shoulder. His breath is hot though the fabric of my shirt. "I'm sorry I hurt your feelings." Then the unspoken words, as clear to me as if he's said it out loud: I'm sorry that I'm me.

"Don't be sorry, baka." I whisper. "Don't. If I didn't like what you are, I wouldn't be here," I say, answering his silent apology. My arms go around him, at first, with some hesitation. But then it's a tight embrace.

His lips meet mine, stealing my breath away.

When we get to the office, everything's already in a frenzy of commotion. We pass Watari, skidding down the hall to meet the messenger. Apparently this week's directive got changed sometime over the weekend, and Enma's messenger is back with new orders.

Well, this is going to be a fun week. Just the logistics that it takes to process new orders can be a nightmare to set up, from what I've heard. I'm glad I'm not Tatsumi or Konoe.

As we get closer to the office, I can hear Terazuma's voice. And man, does he sound pissed. Uh oh.

"You're being unreasonable, Tatsumi."

"Unreasonable? I have nothing but the welfare of my coworkers in mind."

"Coworkers? You mean, Tsuzuki. I'm telling you that you can't just shuffle people around like this without shit coming down from high. I got work to do today, and I'm not gonna sit around at home all day babysitting while you figure out how to keep Tsuzuki and Muraki apart from each other. They're just gonna have to deal with it, and get over it."

"The man is dangerous," Tatsumi's voice grows cold. "We can't just let him stay here."

"Reality check. He came here straight through Enma. You try pulling shit with Enma, Enma will make sure you suffer. You're just going to have to get over yourself."

"Are you trying to tell me how to do my job?" The anger coming out of the office is starting to get close to spontaneous combustion levels. I'm thinking maybe I should have called in sick or something.

"No, but I'm reminding you that you *have* a job, Tatsumi. No matter what your personal feelings are about this, the reality is that he's gonna be working here, and we're all just going to have to deal with that. Even if it's…oh, you two. Great. The one day I come in early to try to avoid running into you, and you're actually here early. I swear, I'm being punished for something I did in a past life."

Tsuzuki and Terazuma scowl at each other threateningly as we walk in. I grab Tsuzuki's arm preemptively as Tatsumi unobtrusively places himself slightly between the two.

"Back off, Terazuma," Tsuzuki says. "Tatsumi's right, Muraki's too dangerous."

"Oh, like you're any better?" Terazuma irritably pulls out his cigarettes and taps one out. He's about to light it, but Tatsumi gives him a look, and Terazuma stuffs the lighter back into his pocket.

Tsuzuki flinches. "What I am has nothing to do with it."

"Yeah. Well, you know, you're just going to have to stop worrying so damn much, and get used to him, because I get the feeling he isn't gonna be leaving any time soon. He's got Enma's mark, or did you not know that?"

"Enma's…" Tsuzuki looks confused. "But that's…"

"Tsuzuki. Maybe you and Hisoka would like the day off?" Tatsumi starts, trying to defuse the situation.

That's when Muraki and Wakaba walk in. Between the two, they're holding four cups of hot tea, one in each hand.

The surprise level in the room suddenly overwhelms the anger.

"Ah! Good morning, Tsuzuki-chan!" Wakaba beams. "We're making tea. Want some?"

"Uh, okay." Tsuzuki says, blinking. He hasn't taken his eyes of Muraki. Same goes for Muraki, he's watching Tsuzuki as if he's not sure what's going on.

Me, I'm just confused. The emotion level in this room is like a loud staticky fuzz in the air. It's so turned up so high and is so convoluted that it's making me dizzy.

Wakaba walks over and hands one mug of tea to Tsuzuki, and the other to Terazuma. Muraki hands her the others and she passes one to Tatsumi and me.

"All right, that means we need to make three more cups. Come on, Kazutaka-san." Muraki gives Tsuzuki one last bewildered look, and walks off obediently after Wakaba.

Did I just see that?

The others are stunned into silence as well, particularly Tatsumi.

"How…what did you do?" Tatsumi looks at Terazuma.

"We came to an understanding." Terazuma says casually. "Too bad I wasn't assigned those cases, I could have slapped him around something serious."

Tsuzuki twitches with anger.

Suddenly, the door opens. Watari comes flying in with a bundle of papers.

"Hey guys!" Watari waves the bundle in his hands. "You'll never guess what came through!" On top of the scroll of paper that makes up the directive, there's a letter.

Watari hands me the letter, and hands Tatsumi the directive. It's just one sheet of paper, folded over and sealed with a dab of wax. It's addressed to me.

My hands shake. It's Enma's decision. His stamp seal is imprinted next to the wax seal, archaic squiggles of ancient writing in red ink.

Quickly, I open it, breaking the seal and unfolding the heavy paper.

"What's it say?" Tsuzuki asks, nervously.

"Wow. I mean, wow." I have to sit down. "Holy shit." I stumble into a nearby chair.

Tsuzuki plucks the paper out of my hands, and reads out loud. 'No action will be taken at this time. Kurosaki Hisoka is to continue in his current capacity until further notice. Witness by my name and seal. The Great King Enma, foremost among the ten kings, ruler of the…'" Tsuzuki's voice trails off. "Hisoka! That means…that means…"

"That means I can stay your partner." I grin.

Tsuzuki cheers, and leans down to hug me, forgetting about the others. I hug him back, happy to have the weight of waiting off of my chest.

But we've forgotten about Tatsumi.

"Oh. No. This is impossible." Tatsumi shakes his head, putting his hand over his eyes as if he can blot out what he just saw. "Oh, god, not this."

Watari leans over Tatsumi, one hand on his shoulder. "Are you okay, Tatsumi? What's it say?"

Tatsumi gives out a deep sigh. "I've been assigned a partner."

Um, shit? I get the feeling I know where this is going.

Muraki and Wakaba walk back in at that moment, this time with more tea.

"Here you go," Wakaba says, to Watari. "Did we miss anything?"

"You!" Tatsumi just got into scary-bad mode. Oh man, Muraki's gonna die. Er…again.

"Me?" Muraki looks confused.

"No, Tatsumi, don't!" Watari lunges at Tatsumi, restraining him as pages of Enma's missive goes flying. One lands on the ground before me. I pick it up.

"'Overflow paperwork from Enmacho Division One will no longer be routed to Summons Division, and now will be routed to Enmacho Division Three. Summons Division will work on investigative cases exclusively only until further notice.'" I skim down the rest, past a bunch of technical details until a name catches my eye. No way. This is insane.

"'Tatsumi Seiichirou is hereby relieved of his position as secretary to Summons Division, and will begin investigation of cases in his rightful district of Tokyo, block five. Tokyo cases will no longer go into overflow and will be handled exclusively by the Shinigami of district of Tokyo. Beginning this day, 10th month 2, Heisei era 11, Muraki Kazutaka is hereby assigned to district of Tokyo, block five as Tatsumi Seiichirou's partner.'"

Um. That doesn't sound like a good idea. I'm starting to wonder if Enma actually researches any of this, or maybe he just doesn't care. Or maybe Enma's secretary's got a really warped sense of humor.

"Is that my suit?!"

Already, Terazuma and Watari are stepping in to try to keep Tatsumi from killing Muraki.

Oh man, this is going to be a crazy week.

*******

|Oriya|

It's been one week and one day.

A week ago, he was called to Tokyo to identify the body.

In his left hand, Oriya holds a pair of earrings. They're like crystallized drops of blood. They're the only thing that's left of Muraki. As befitting of Buddhist rites, Muraki's body has been cremated.

Oriya listens to the drone of the priest chanting the sutra. The heavy scent of sandalwood incense fills the air.

It smells like death. Oriya closes his eyes.

There's more people than he expected would come. Muraki was well-liked in life by his peers and colleagues. Most of the people here are medical staffers or university researchers from Tokyo, Kyoto, and other places where Muraki had traveled to as a medical research coordinator in the last few years, after he was promoted into management. A few women choke back sobs or sniffle into their handkerchiefs.

Muraki had no living relatives to handle his affairs. Oriya took care of it all.

Oriya shifts uncomfortably in his black suit. He hasn't had to wear a suit in years, but it's what's expected of him. He yearns to return to Kyoto where he can watch the leaves change color in silence. Instead, he must stay in Tokyo for the rest of the week to finish up Muraki's affairs. Oriya's the legal executor of his estate.

The priest chants on.

A year. It's been almost a year since Oriya saw Muraki alive for the last time. Since Shion University's research building mysteriously burned down.

Oriya knew he would never see Muraki alive again, after he left that night. Muraki said as much. He just didn't realize it'd be so soon. In some ways, Oriya has hoped that he would never have to do this again, that somehow Muraki would outlive him.

Twice is already too much in one lifetime.

Oriya's face is expressionless as he grips the earrings tightly. The metal pierces his palm, a trickle of blood melding with the scarlet gemstones. He doesn't wince at the flash of pain.

Finally, the priest is finished. Oriya takes the lead in offering incense to the deceased. He does it smoothly, with a certain measured grace, without hesitation, bowing solemnly to Muraki's picture. Muraki's portrait looks thoughtfully on.

The joss stick's thin wooden handle is smeared with his blood as he places it in the sand-filled urn. But it's not noticeable, because it's already red. The smoke trails through the air like a gossamer ribbon of white, and for a moment, Oriya is choked by the scent.

Oriya quietly takes his leave. He'll wait outside while they nail the coffin shut. The only thing inside is a box of Muraki's ashes, wrapped in white silk. Oriya had planned on sending his earrings with him, but can't seem to let them go.

They'll go with him back to Kyoto.

Oriya takes deep breaths, once he goes outside. Outside, it's grown cold, autumn's breath filling the air. He looks up. The sky's an iron gray, obscured by clouds. He looks down. His palm is sticky with blood.

Oriya sighs.

He walks out into the temple courtyard. The first leaves of autumn are beginning their dizzying descent, stained crimson and gold. His footsteps are crisp against the brittle leaves.

He's alone, but for a solitary man in black who sits on the other side of the courtyard, smoking a cigarette. He's got his back turned to Oriya.

Oriya says nothing, his eyes on the falling leaves about him. It's not as beautiful as Kyoto, but it speaks to him. He closes his eyes, counting off the things that he must do, the people he must speak to. The list grows smaller every day. Once it's done, he can go home.

When he opens his eyes, he's not alone. But he knew that.

"You must be Mibu-san." The man in black's come up to him. Oriya thinks he looks familiar, but can't seem to place him. He's wearing a black suit over a black shirt, rakish in style, something very modern with sleek lines.

"Yes, that's right." Oriya says, as he searches his memory, trying to decipher who the man is.

The man rakes a hand through his black hair, cut in that oddly asymmetrical style that has been very popular in the last few years, long in parts, short in others, all together wholly uneven, yet with the overall feeling of balance. It's something that only the Japanese could have thought of.

"Nice to meet you. You're my little brother's friend, correct?"

"Muraki had no broth…" Oriya's mouth goes slack. "No brother. No…" His eyes grow wide. "Saki!" The word's like a hiss of air.

"That'd be me. Shidou Saki. Pleased to meet you." Saki smiles sharply.

"I thought…he…" Oriya's hand trembles. He remembers hearing about Saki. Once, Muraki showed him a picture. But that was a boy. This is a man.

"Eh, old news." Saki shrugs. "I heard my brother died though. Is that true?"

"Yes." Oriya's eyes narrow suspiciously, as he wonders who this person really is.

"This means that you're the executor of his estate, correct?"

"It's possible." Oriya says, furtively.

"Oh good. Well, I'll be seeing you later this week then. We have a lot to catch up on, you and I. Don't worry about an address or anything; I know where Kazu-chan's apartment is. Ja." Saki walks off with a wave of his hand. He disappears down the big steps of the temple.

Oriya shivers as the cold autumn wind picks up strength, scattering the leaves around him in a swirl of motion, twining his long dark hair though its bitter fingers. He never thought he'd meet another dead man in his life.

Oriya's hand is bleeding again.

*******

To be continued...

Disclaimer: Yami no Matsuei belongs to Matsushita Yoko.

Thanks to my prereaders: Danceswithelvis, Cyrus Marriner, and Ruby D. You guys rock. Thank you for all your input and help. DWE came up with Muraki's "impressive" line.

Thanks also to you, the reader. If you've followed this fic this far, I'm really, really grateful for your interest/patience, because this thing is so damn long. Thank you, thank you, thank you! *___* Especially for all your kind words and support. ^_^

Author's notes: Continuity is a mix of anime and manga up to volume 9. Timeline based loosely on the manga publication dates (thanks to Theria's website). I'm writing by the seat of my pants here, but it looks like I've got to a point where the plot will pick up. Chapter 5 is already in the works.

Next chapter: A routine case in Tokyo opens the gate. Tatsumi learns how to deal with his new partner, Terazuma continues his role as Muraki's mentor, and Oriya holds the key that Saki is looking for.

Behind the scenes:
GenrouDocky: Hmm...perhaps they should look into an ofuda that prevents the empathic nature of Hisoka from picking up everything?
EvilAsianGenius: heh it's like a condom for his feelings. XD
GenrouDocky: *chokes* Oh lord...yes!
EvilAsianGenius: that...that's just frightening.
GenrouDocky: Isn't it? Omake?
EvilAsianGenius: heheheh
GenrouDocky: <Hisoka> Hold your horses...I need to slip my ofuda on.
EvilAsianGenius: XD I wonder if Muraki would know how to block it. :o
GenrouDocky: O.O He's been poking holes in Hisoka's ofuda?
GenrouDocky: That's just wrong!
EvilAsianGenius: it's so wrong. I love it.

Omake!

What if Terazuma didn't tell Muraki not to drink anything Watari offered him…?

Presenting…

The Path to the King of Practical Jokers, Professor Watari

"All right!" Watari begins rummaging through a few stacks of paper. "I know it's here…I just got it yester…okay, here we go. No, that's not it…Sit, sit. There's a chair under that pile of books, you can just put those on the ground…wah, my potion…wait just a moment please, I need to add something…"

Muraki looks around the lab. His attention falls upon a carelessly unlocked glass case, filled to the brim with absently labeled bottles. He studies the potions lined up in the case curiously. None of the bottles are labeled with anything more than a date.

"What's this?" Muraki gestures toward the multi-colored bottles.

"Eh?" Watari is titrating a solution into another solution. His inattention causes him to add one drop too many, causing his potion to turn a murky green color. "WAH! Ruined! Noooooooo!"

"Ah, my apologies." Muraki says absently, without really meaning it.

"That's all right," Watari says, as he sniffles, staring at the now vile green concoction. He pouts for a moment before remembering Muraki's question.

"Oh right, your question…those are my previous experiments," Watari says sadly.

"What are you experimenting with?" Muraki asks.

"A potion to change…er…actually, I'm testing different flavors." Watari says, a little gleam coming into his eyes. "Want to help me taste something?"

"All right." Muraki shrugs. Even as a human, no amount of poison could hurt him seriously, and he doesn't think that as a Shinigami, it could be worse.

Besides, what's the worst that can happen?

Watari gleefully rummages through his potion cabinet for a moment, before pulling out a bottle. It's pink and fizzes happily when Watari shakes it. Watari finds a clean beaker and pours out a measure.

"All right, let's try this one." Watari hands the beaker to Muraki.

"What's it supposed to taste like?" Muraki asks, swirling the liquid around. It continues fizzing.

"That's for you to tell me," Watari replies, and then, "You're the control study."

"Ah, right." Muraki shrugs, and downs the potion in one shot.

Spicy!

*******

Is it possible to kill a Shinigami?

Really. Is it possible? Because the urge to kill is definitely upon me.

"This isn't funny." I say through gritted teeth. My voice is ridiculously high, coming out in an undignified squeak.

"Awwww! Muraki-chan's blushing!" Wakaba looms down, crouching before me. Suddenly, I'm trapped in her arms.

It…it's a huggle. I've only heard of such things.

How incredibly degrading.

"Ah!" I exclaim unintentionally, as she gives me a big squeeze, my arms flailing about. Around me, the other Shinigami snicker.

"Well, it's a good thing someone kept those kid's clothes," Tatsumi stifles a smile behind his hand. "Otherwise we'd have had a naked Muraki on our hands."

Terazuma laughs. "Hey kid," he says, looking down at me. "Better watch where those hands of yours are going if you don't want to get a thumping." He leans down to ruffle my hair playfully as Wakaba lets me go.

He ruffled. My hair.

"This is too degrading!" I brush at my hair with my hands. "You're cruel!" My normally calm demeanor is completely shattered.

"Not really. You want me to thwap you instead?" Terazuma looks down, amused.

"N…no." I pout. Pout. I'm pouting. This is…this is insane. I've gone insane. My body's that of a child. I'm wearing a little white t-shirt with a picture of a gray bunny on the front, and white shorts. They're…really short.

And the bunny is very cute. Oh god.

Stupid potion. No snuzzle poopyhead potion!

Wait, that's not how I think. What in the world…

"You really should have known better than to interrupt Watari when he's experimenting," Tatsumi says coolly. "If you manage to catch him at the right time it can be very hazardous to your health." Tatsumi pauses, adjusting his glasses. "And dignity."

"I didn't know." Tears are now coming into my eyes. Tears! I feel a sniffle coming on.

A moment later, the door opens. I can't see around these desks to know who's here, but I can hear Watari's voice. And that of two girls.

"Hey, you think I'm cruel?" Terazuma grins down at me. "Well, guess what kid, your luck's about to change."

"What are you…" I manage to get out, before he picks me up, hooking his hands under my arms and plopping me down on the bare desktop.

"Yuma, Saya…this is Muraki. He'll be working with us from now on." Tatsumi says with a smile, reaching out to pat me on the head.

"WAIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!"

"KAWAIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!!"

It's quite possibly the most chilling thing I've ever heard in my life.

Oh gods, they're coming right for me.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

C&C can be sent to cori_ohki@hotmail.com
Extras may be found on http://eag.squidkitty.org/