It was a beautiful Monday morning. The way only the young--the extremely young--could enjoy it. And so Omi was, bustling about the brightly sunlit shop, humming to himself as he set out the displays and saw to the register, preparing for opening in a half hour.
"Sometimes I think you pull this just to make me feel old," Youji grumbled, coming down the stairs with his sunglasses high up on his nose and looking decidedly grumpy. "And that you must start with about three pots of coffee before you even get out of bed. Any truth to it?"
"Youji-kun!" Omi looked up from a pot of freesias. "You're twenty minutes early!"
Youji yawned. "And feeling every minute of it twice. Coffee?"
"On in the kitchen, help yourself."
"Do~umo." Youji reappeared, cradling a mug. He eyed Omi. "The pot was full, too, what's your secret?"
"I don't know, Youji-kun... healthy living?"
The detective shot him a look over his sunglasses. "It's not nice to hit your elders below the belt first thing in the morning, Omitchi."
"What do you mean, Youji-kun?" Omi beamed.
Youji frowned at him for a moment, then shrugged and sat down at the counter. "Never mind."
Omi got back to arranging the displays. "Ne, Youji-kun, why so early? You could've slept a bit more and not needed the coffee."
"Tch. Barely closed my eyes all night. Couldn't sleep." 'Cause Ken went straight back to his room. "So I gave up and came down."
Bombay looked back at him, golden brows pursed. "A~h, that's no good! You should take a nap after your shift, okay?"
Youji smiled. "Don't worry about it. Sleep is for weaklings, anyway."
"Or people who enjoy mornings and don't drink gallons of coffee."
"Shh."
For a few minutes, they respectively drank and bustled in silence.
"Demo ne, Youji-kun..." Omi began.
"Hmh?"
"Have you seen Aya-kun recently?"
Youji looked up. "Not since Saturday, why?"
"When on Saturday?"
"The afternoon--" he kept his voice even though he was starting to be alarmed. "Why?"
"Well..." Omi folded his arms, looking off. "He's been acting a bit strange since then. I was wondering if he might be sick... But you know Aya-kun," he shrugged. "He's not going to tell me symptoms."
"Yeah... Strange how?"
Omi turned away, picking up one display to move to the front. "Kind of... absent-minded, almost light-headed on Saturday, but that was--well--Um." He cleared his throat. "Maybe... maybe a little more irritable than usual..."
"That's weird--he was calm when I saw him." Like the rock of Gibralter, Youji thought with a twinge, glancing at his knuckles.
"He got into a fight with Ken-kun." Omi turned around as Youji choked violently on his coffee. "Daijoubu?! Youji-kun--?"
Youji waved him back, coughing. "Whatthe--hellyamean, he fought with Ken? Why?!" His eyes widened. "Is he alright? Is that why I haven't seen him since? Where is he?"
Omi held up both hands, glancing towards the back. "He's fine! It's okay," he assured the older man, making shushing motions. "Scratches, bruises, and a split lip, that's all. You saw Ken-kun yesterday, right?"
Youji nodded slowly. "Idiot said he fell off his bike," he muttered. "He's lucky it wasn't any worse, if it was Aya--"
"I don't know," Omi said. "Aya-kun looked like he got the worst of it."
Youji frowned. "Why would Ken lie? He--what'd he go and pick a fight over?"
"Other way around, it seems."
Youji stood up with his mug, heading for the kitchen. "Right," he forced a laugh. "Now I know you're pulling my leg. Aya doesn't do that."
Omi followed. "I'm not kidding, Youji-kun. I had a tough time breaking them up--they were serious. Especially Aya-kun." Youji had stopped with his back to him, in front of the sink. "Youji-kun, I'm worried about them. If they're that angry with each other, it could be a big problem. On missions--"
"They wouldn't take anything that far."
"I don't know..."
"What was it about?"
"I'm not sure. Ken-kun was taunting Aya-kun about something, but..."
Youji swallowed. It couldn't have been... He set down his cup, his hands fisting at the rim of the sink.
"Because I'm not... very good to you."
"Says who?"
"A--nobody."
It couldn't be...
"He hit you back, na?"
Aya wasn't stupid enough to fight over something like that.
Youji forced himself around to face Omi's concerned blue gaze, schooling his face to neutrality. "So what happened? Did they make up afterwards?"
"No. I had to send Ken-kun out to be sure Aya-kun wouldn't start up again. I only saw Ken-kun once yesterday, and he apologized to me, but I don't think he had a choice; it was Aya-kun who started it. He just seemed out of it yesterday, and today he said he wouldn't be coming to work..."
"That bad?" Youji's eyebrows rose. "Ken--Ken didn't give him a concussion or something--"
Omi shook his head. "No. If he's not just... sick, or out of temper because of something else, then I think he's still angry with Ken-kun."
Youji skirted past him into the shop. "It'll blow over," he said, going for his apron. "It's some kinda young alpha-male crap, just like the first time. Ken's good at bringing that out in a guy."
"You make them sound like dogs marking their territory, Youji-kun."
Youji dropped his apron and knelt to retrieve it. If what they're 'marking' is me... I swear I'm gonna kill them both.
"Ah, Youji-kun? Leave the apron, I kinda need you to do deliveries today, since Aya-kun's not here."
Youji straightened, rehanging his apron. "Fine." He took the list Omi extended, glanced at it and groaned. "These'll take till closing."
"I know," Omi said, expression sympathetic. "But they're all kinda urgent. I'll get Ken-kun to cover for you while I'm at school, and I'll take your closing shift, okay? I'd have Ken-kun do it, but he can't carry that much on his bike. Not to mention I'll have a hard enough time getting him out of bed in time for me to leave for school."
"Okay, I gotcha." Youji sighed, making for the back.
"Ah--! Youji-kun--" Youji stopped with his hand on the door to the flower shed. "I put them all out by your car."
"Oh." Youji looked puzzled for a moment. "Heh, you weren't gonna let me say no, were you?" He crossed to the other door, that let out onto the alley behind the shop. "Well, I'll... see you tonight, I guess."
Omi pressed both hands together, bobbing his head quickly. "Thanks, Youji-kun. I appreciate it..."
Youji disappeared. A few minutes later Omi heard his car pull out with a sigh of relief. He started as the door to the flower shed opened.
Aya emerged, arms full with three stacks of terra cotta pots. "'Don't see what we needed all these for. They were so far behind all the gardening equipment and potting soil, it would've been faster just to buy new ones."
"The marigolds and petunias all need repotting, and terra cotta sells better than plastic anyhow, Aya-kun." Omi pulled off his apron, hanging it on its peg as Aya set the pots down in one corner and ducked into the kitchen. "I've gotta get going, Aya-kun, I'll be late."
"Aa, have a good day," Aya answered absently. A moment later he stuck his head out of the kitchen, a mug of coffee in his hand. "Omi, did you start drinking--" But Omi had already disappeared. Aya frowned. "Strange..."
Youji hadn't shown up for either of their joint shifts. Aya hadn't seen him since Saturday, and Omi had no excuse for the older man's absence. By the end of the day Aya had concluded that Youji knew about his fight with Ken and was angry at him for it. He was almost contrite, but Ken had ruined it with his taunt near the end of two tense shifts together, "Hey, the first afternoon shift is open tomorrow. Wanna fight me for it?"
Aya had ignored him, but not without considerable effort.
Omi had made dinner an hour and a half ago. He, Aya and Ken had made various excuses to take trays to their respective rooms. Now the evening was wearing on, and Aya was reading a bad translation of Candide for the third time in an attempt to bore himself to sleep.
He sat up on his bed suddenly, at the sound of sneakers thudding down the walkway outside, followed by a frantic pounding on his door.
"Aya-kun? Aya-kun!!" The knocking on his door got harder. "You're in there, aren't you? Aya-ku--"
Aya pulled the door open, eyebrows high. "What?" He took in Omi's mission gear. "They moved?"
Omi nodded, breathless. "The meeting's gonna be in an hour, and I can't find Youji-kun!"
"He's not--?" Aya began.
Ken jogged up, also dressed for a mission. "His car's gone."
"Shit," Aya breathed.
Omi gnawed at one fingertip of a glove. "Neither of you know where he went? This is bad..."
Ken shrugged. "We can do it without him, it's no big deal..."
"He already accepted this mission!" Omi exclaimed, looking wide-eyed up at Ken. "We didn't expect anything tonight, but he was supposed to be here in case!"
Aya took a step back from the door. "We have to finish any mission we accept. That's the rule."
"Or else--"
"They wouldn't enforce that," Ken interrupted. He looked at his teammates in turn. Aya disappeared into his room. "Hey! They've only got four Weiß, they're not going to kill one of us over some ridiculous regulation! ... Right?"
"You tried to stop a mission once before, Ken-kun..."
Ken paled. "Yeah, but..."
"That rule is not a joke. Nor are those Kritiker would send after us. They'll do it." Aya swept past them in his trenchcoat, katana in hand. "Come on."
"What are we doing? We can't--" Ken grabbed Aya's arm as he caught up with him at the staircase. "If that's how it is, we can't just leave him--"
Aya pulled his arm back, eyes narrowing. "I don't intend to. You two head out, I'll find him and rendez-vous."
"Wait!" Omi said as Aya headed downstairs. "He could be anywhere! Maybe we should just stay here--if it's all four of us, they can't--"
"You think they don't have people in Crashers dying for your positions?" Aya sneered. "Give me the coordinates and go."
Omi hesitated before pulling a piece of paper out of his pocket and handing it over, face distraught. "Aya-kun... if you don't find him..."
"Move," Aya ordered, rushing down the stairs in a swirl of leather.
"Chikushou," Ken muttered, moving towards the back staircase. "C'mon, Omi."
Sunset Beach bar-lounge, downtown Tokyo. Packed wall to wall, music blaring, liquor flowing, not a woman in sight.
"And so I say, 'stick this job, there's plenty of openings for someone with my skills.' And you know what? I've been unemployed since. Hey, where ya goin'? You barely touched your drink!"
"I... well... I came here with someone, and I--"
"Forget 'im!" Youji draped his arm around the young man's shoulders. "Yer better off with me--" Youji looked up as a burly, leather-clad man almost a foot taller than him materialized out of the crowd behind his intended 'target.' "Ah, who's this, your father?" He laughed. The other looked less than amused.
The first hand to land on him, though, came from behind, pulling him back a few steps. "He won't bother you any further," a rich, unmistakable voice assured the two men. The taller of the two shot Youji and the newcomer a look before collecting his boyfriend and moving off.
Youji turned to glare at his rescuer. "Aya. Since when do you speak for me? I have every intention of bothering them again." He leered. "Maybe both at once, whaddya think?"
Aya caught him around the waist as he tottered, trying to push his way through the crowd. "It'll have to wait, we have a mission."
"I didn't accept any mission." Youji tried to twist away and stumbled. Aya pulled him back to his feet.
"You did, a week ago." Aya lowered his voice, though it wasn't really necessary, in this throng. "The North Korean arms-smuggling ring, remember?"
"Tch. I don't wanna go. I'm drunk off my ass, I can't fight."
"I can see that, but there's no choice, and no time." Aya shouldered through the last crush of people and pushed the door open.
Youji glanced down as Aya dragged him out into the street. "You knocked out the bouncer." He snickered. "That wasn't very subtle." He frowned as Aya ushered him into his car, which was idling by the sidewalk. "They're not gonna like you here."
Aya swung in the driver's side, slamming the door. "Three other clubs 'don't like me' tonight," he said, fanning out a handful of matchbooks before tossing them onto the dashboard and pulling out. "You smoke too much."
"Thanks for reminding me," Youji said, pulling a crumpled pack of Mild Sevens out of a pocket and tapping one out.
Aya looked at him, then back at the road. "Just open the window."
Youji did, taking one of the matchbooks to light up. He took a long drag and blew the smoke out the window. He frowned. "Is my door broken?"
"No, I picked the lock. Your gear is in the back."
"Aha."
There was silence for a moment. "So this is where you were?"
"Ha!" Youji half-turned to him, an ironic smile on his lips. "I knew it!" Aya glanced over. "You're exactly the same! You and Ken, you... complete assholes."
"What?"
Youji nodded, mouth twisting bitterly. "Pissed you off, didn't it? Seeing me hit on a guy?" Youji ploughed on before Aya could answer. "Same with Ken! Girls? Sure! Fuck as many as you goddamn well please. But your ass is mine. That's the key."
"Youji--"
"How come you don't go around slugging the girls I date, Aya? Huh? Don't they count?"
Aya's expression hardened, and he glared out the windshield.
"Well?" Youji demanded, taking another pull at his cigarette. "That's what you two fought about, isn't it?" Aya was silent. "Bingo. God, I don't get either of you. I just don't. I'm out every other week with a woman, and no one bats an eyelash, you guys don't even know where I am! But! Someone else is fucking me, not the other way around, then it's--!"
"It's not like that," Aya growled.
"Isn't it? Then why don't the women piss you off, Aya? Why--"
"Youji, what choice do I have?!" Aya shouted. "You're angry I 'spoke for you' in the bar, how am I supposed to stop you from dating whom you please? It's not my place!"
He caught his breath in the ensuing silence. "I didn't hit Ken for sleeping with you."
"Why, then?"
"That," Aya said, pointing to Youji's chin.
The detective frowned darkly, turning towards the window. "I don't need you to fight my battles."
"My apologies."
"Oh, shut up." Youji flicked the butt of his cigarette out onto the highway. "You don't fucking get it, so don't act like you do."
"Hey--" Aya squinted in annoyance as Youji turned the car light on. "Turn that off--" Youji batted his hand away from the switch, eyes narrowed at the side of his face.
"Split lip, bruises, what else is there?" He grabbed Aya's hand as he tried for the light again, eyebrows rising. "Your hand's bandaged."
"I fell." Aya said tightly.
Youji shoved his coatsleeve down, frowning harder. "Yeah? There's more, isn't there? You dumb bastard." He released Aya, flicked the light off and sat heavily back in his seat. "For what, Aya?"
Aya scowled. "You date whom you please, I'll fight whom I please."
"And you're here courting execution why?"
Aya glared at the road for a while. Finally, he reached into the back seat and tossed Youji's coat into his lap. "Because I don't have anyone else to sleep with."
*Bzzt* "Bombay... Bombay, come back?" *Bzzt*
Omi pulled out his radio, motioning Ken over. "Bombay here, over."
"Abyssinian here. Found Balinese. Approaching from the north, advise?"
"Yokatta!" Omi's face coloured with relief. "He found him," he whispered to Ken. "Abyssinian, the Takks are here, but the local contact hasn't arrived yet. The guard's light on the east side; if you scale the wall you should get in with no problem. We're on the third floor down, over."
*Bzzt*
"Abyssinian?"
"... Recommending Musk Rose. Don't move till we rendez-vous. Abyssinian out."
"E-eh?" Omi blinked at the radio gone dead in his hand. Ken reached to shut it off as static filled the ensuing silence.
"What'd he say?"
"To wait for them here, but... he's recommending we retreat."
Ken folded his arms, leaning back against the wall. He sighed. "He musta found Youji stone-cold drunk somewhere. But thank god he found him."
Omi nodded emphatically, brows knitting. "Because I'm sure Aya-kun was right about that rule..."
"But... How're we gonna pull this off? There's a Kritiker mole with the Yakuza group, so once they arrive, if we don't do something, he'll report us--we might all get in trouble."
Omi gnawed on his bottom lip. "Make a cheap attempt on the leaders from up here and let them chase us out with machine-gun fire?"
"Sounds like fun," Ken said, face dour. "Though we've done worse."
Omi sighed. "It's a shame to pass up such a good opportunity, but... without Youji-kun at his best, two gangs is just too dangerous."
Ken nodded.
The meeting place between the two mafia groups was the underground parking lot for a shopping mall that had run out of funds before reaching completion. There was only the shell of a building above it. A high wall built when the land was vacant still surrounded the lot. It was far outside of Tokyo, and in ten years the neighbourhood had turned to slums around it, so while property rights remained with someone, no one was going to finish it or start anything new. In short, a perfect meeting place for anyone who could not afford to be noticed or disturbed.
The parking lot had five levels, the top four of which were open in the centre and looked down to those below. The Takks--a branch of the North Korean mafia--had been using this spot as their base for almost a month. At the moment it was lit, therefore, with power cables diverted from a streetlight outside. The malfunctions of this latter, thanks to the locale, had not yet been repaired.
Ken and Omi were on the third level down, crouched at one corner of the walled opening overlooking the fourth, where the Takks had already gathered.
"If you shot down the leader... of the foreign gang...?" Ken suggested.
"I don't know..." Omi frowned. "We might scatter them and lose their trace completely. As it is, if we let them know someone's onto them now, they're going to go underground for at least another week, and we'll have to start the detective work from scratch."
"We still have the mole."
"Might give him away by doing this..."
Ken paused, then scowled. "Well, if he's the one ready to rat us out, get us killed and replace us, I don't give a--"
Omi's arm flashed out, hurling a dart past Ken's ear. Omi jerked his head towards the far wall, his utterance of Ken's name almost simultaneous with the clatter of metal on metal and the curse from behind him. "Ken-kun! Move!"
They rolled, and three shots echoed as the concrete where they had just been sitting pocked and flew up in fragments. Ken scrambled to his feet, ducking behind a pillar and narrowly dodging several more shots. "Omi?!" He could hear commotion from the floor below, raised voices, then the distinctive twang of Omi's crossbow. A thunk, a scream, more shots.
"Left, Ken-kun!"
Ken sprung out as he was directed without bothering to check first. One suited man faced him, gun raised. It clicked fruitlessly twice before Ken's claws tore through his throat.
"Duck!"
A crossbow bolt flew over his head, sending another yakuza's weapon spinning out of his grasp. Ken lunged, embedding one set of claws in his adversary's stomach, the other in his shoulder, and hurling him into a third enemy. A well-aimed arrow finished that one while he flailed, unbalanced.
"Guess this answers the question of where the 'local contact' was! I think we screwed up!"
The last man near them went down with an arrow to the temple, but Ken could aready see a second group running towards them from the other side of the level. The Takks wouldn't be far behind.
Ken waved Omi towards the ramp leading to the upper levels. "C'mon!" Before they get close enough to aim! Weaving between support pillars, they dodged the fire of the approaching men, skidding around a corner into the toll area where the ramps led up and down.
The small space was already littered with bodies. "Yo~! You guys fucked up!" Youji looked down at them from his perch atop the pike, a length of blood-slicked wire between his fists.
"Youji--!" Ken began, relieved.
"This way," Aya's voice cut him off. The Weiß leader was nearer the up-ramp, dripping katana in one hand. He motioned to an open door beside him. "Maintenance stairs. Come!"
Omi yelped as a shot hit the wall next to him, and dashed for the door. Youji hopped down lightly and followed Ken in. Aya twisted the wheel on the door locked as the others spread out on the rickety metal grid landing behind him. They were in a reasonably wide shaft, the iron stairs spiralling against the walls for a long way up and several more floors down--presumably into the mall above and utility corridors below.
"What do we do?" Omi asked.
"Head up," Aya answered. "Fast. It shouldn't take them more than two minutes to figure out where we went."
The other three nodded and they started up at a run.
"Aya-kun, we're going to be trapped once they do. They've been hiding out here for a week, they must know the layout inside out."
"Someone remind me why we don't carry firearms?" Ken groused.
"We're supposed to be assassins, not a militia?" Youji offered. "Situations like this, a tank'd be more to the point."
"Shut up and run," Aya growled. "If we can get up into the main building before they cut us off, we should have enough space to manoeuver."
Ken came abreast of Youji between Omi in the fore and Aya behind. "Na," he looked warily up at the older man's flushed face. "You alright for this?"
Youji smiled, flashing him a look that was at once overly alert and half-asleep. "Scotch and endorphins give you quite a buzz, Ken, you should try it sometime."
"Shit," Ken muttered. "You--"
"We're getting out here," Aya gritted.
"Eh--?" The door on the landing they had just left burst open. Ken hesitated as Omi stopped, leaning over the railing to aim his crossbow.
"Keep going!" the boy urged, closing one eye and picking off the first, then second man to come through the door. The other three reached the next landing and Youji pulled open the door.
"Arara..." He paused. "Where the hell...?"
"It doesn't matter!" Aya appeared behind them. "Omi, come on!" Bombay fired off a last bolt. There was a satisfying scream from below and the boy ran to follow his teammates out onto the main floor.
Aya pulled the door shut, cursing under his breath at the lock on the other side. Ken pulled out a flashlight and Aya produced a second. "Omi, where are we?"
Omi bit his lip, looking around at the mess of pipes and leftover construction materials. "I think we're right under the main building. With most of the heating pipes, and there's a boiler room somewhere over there," he pointed. "But this floor was never finished, so the blueprint--"
"Scatter!" Aya's flashlight beam disappeared, the light from Ken's flashing briefly along his katana as he drew it. Ken saw Omi rush back, aiming his crossbow to support Aya as the door was flung open, and Ken turned to obey Aya's directive.
Out of the ensuing chaos, something rolled underfoot. There was the swoop of sliced air, wet-hard sound of rending flesh. Ken stumbled, his light went flying and extinguished itself to the sound of scattering springs. The strangled screams of unfamiliar voices, what sounded like a warning from Aya. Too many footsteps in the dark around them to be easily accounted for. Were there--? Then he heard Youji's voice.
"KEN!"
He didn't see the needlepoint of red till he was facing it, as Youji rammed into him and threw him off balance. He felt Youji's body jerk, was driven back with him before he saw the beam of the laser sight that had been trained on him, or even registered hearing the shot. "Y-Youji!!"
Ken's right foot stepped back into nothingness and he flailed. In the meagre light spilling from the landing beyond the door, he saw Youji silhouetted in front of him, one arm reaching above his head, balancing on something. Then the older man's fingers closed on his shoulder, hurling him back from the edge. Ken tripped, fell, saw red pinpoints dance around each other on the far wall, and too late--
"Youji, look out!"
The door swung shut, plunging them into darkness again. Another shot rang out.
"Youji?!"
Ken was on his feet again. He heard the man approaching him this time, dug his claws into the first flesh he could reach. Behind him, a creak of straining metal, and then a rush of air. "Youji!!"
"Doushita?" Omi's voice. "Ken-kun??"
The darkness was full of these red beams suddenly, they webbed the air. "Aya! Aya, Youji fell--"
"Where are you? Where is he?" Swoosh, thunk, a beam ran up the wall and disappeared. Then another. "Omi!"
"Here!"
"Aya, here!"
More shots.
"Ken? Is this where--?" Aya was next to him.
"Yes, be careful, there's no floor all along--"
"Get out! Withdraw, NOW!"
Ken stumbled as Aya shouldered him aside, hearing a bullet sing between them. Could everyone see in the dark but him?! "Aya--!"
"Aya-kun!!"
A hand he recognized closed around his forearm and tugged urgently. "C'mon, Ken-kun!"
"But Aya--!" Aya was gone. "What--"
"Ken-kun, this way!" He had no choice but to stumble after his teammate. Gunfire closed the path behind them.