Tour Guide to the Underworld - Chapter 8: New Territory

[yoru-no-hikaru.livejournal.com]

Pairing: KinKi Kids
Characters: Nishikido Ryo, Uchi Hiroki, Nagase Tomoya, Takizawa Hideaki, Okada Junichi (and others)
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: Don't own the JE boys (duh!), but OCs are mine and I created the story
Setting: AU
Warnings: Creepy, language, situations of character death
Multi-Chapter


Notes: It has been AGES!!!!! Yes, I'm still updating this. What can I say? Work and moving had me so extremely busy, the weeks just flew by. I can't believe it's gonna be Christmas soon. When did that happen, I wonder? ^^" I'm still not entirely done with all my stuff, but things have settled into a pace that allows me to enjoy some more time-consuming spare time activities again. :D So, I hope you'll enjoy it.


Intro: While Koichi is trying his best to just keep up his work, he finds himself confronted with unusual tasks, his own tormented mind and a disturbingly attractive apprentice. Ryo learns some more about the world he's living in and finds that not everything in it is pleasant. At the same time Tsuyoshi feels rather worried for his lover - and suddenly finds himself in a very new situation.






“Koichi-kun?” Ryo asked warily. “Why is it we don’t go out today?”
Koichi chuckled lightly at the younger’s worried tone. “Do you think we got ground work?”
Ryo merely blinked at him.
“Never worry,” Koichi assured him. “Today we’re going to work in our archive. It’s important to keep record of your collecting.”
“But why do we do that?” Ryo asked. “I mean, why aren’t there people working in the archive to do that?”
“There are people working in the archive,” Koichi told him. “But we could never employ enough people to manage all the personal records. Even if there were enough people, the archive wouldn’t be able to hold them.”
“Oh,” Ryo made, nodding in understanding. “So what will we be doing there?”



“Today we will list energy-levels of people we’ve been guiding,” Koichi explained. “I’ll show you how it works and how it’s important.”
The next moment there was a knock on the door and a young man Ryo had not seen before opened it carefully.
“Koichi-san,” he said timidly, eyeing the room with hectic eyes, “you’ve been requested to obtain new absorbers.”
Koichi’s eyes darkened, but then he forced a smile onto his face. “You can tell your... You can tell Hatori-san that I’ll see right to it.”
The boy merely nodded and already made to close the door again, which he had only opened far enough to stick his head into the room, when Koichi called him back.
“Why don’t you grab some chocolate, Yuri-kun?” he offered with a smile.



The boy blinked a few times, then bit his lip as though considering the offer like it was something forbidden, but then he sneaked into the room and rushed to a box on the desk. Very carefully he opened it and grabbed a piece of chocolate, munching it instantly. He grinned happily at Koichi.
“Thank you,” he chirped and waved before he quickly swept out the room.
Koichi smiled after him while Ryo merely blinked.
“Who was that?” the younger man asked.
A train of thought seemed interrupted in Koichi’s mind as he shifted his focus back to his trainee. He kept smiling, but his eyes had turned darker again.
“A poor kid,” he stated simply.



He hoped very vaguely that Ryo would be satisfied with that or at least take the hint that he didn’t like to talk about the issue, but the other merely kept looking at him expectantly. Finally Koichi sighed and pulled him to the door. He pointed out onto the corridor where the boy was standing right next to a beautiful, if weird-looking woman. Her clothing was a bit wrenched, but she wore tons of expensive looking jewellery. The boy again, seemed quite intimidated.
“This is Hatori-san,” Koichi explained. “She is quite... well, something. You know, with the departments. She’s the daughter of Hatori Shun, you know, the guy in charge of the restriction section.”
“But I wanted to know who that kid is,” Ryo insisted.
“Basically,” Koichi sighed, sounding quite disturbed, “he is her pet.”



“Huh?” Ryo burst out, startling Koichi, who then quickly pulled him back and away from the door.
“Are you mad?” he scolded him. “Do you want to attract her attention? That is a fierce woman.”
“Why can she keep a young boy as a pet?” Ryo asked, sounding shocked.
“Well, the thing is... he’s not really a boy, per say...”
“But...”
“I know what he looks like,” Koichi nodded. “But let me tell you... you have no idea. Actually, Yuri is quite a dangerous creature.”
“Dangerous?” Ryo asked sceptically, stretching his neck to catch another glimpse of the kid.



“While he is presented to us in this form,” Koichi explained, “he is not really human. Women like Hatori...” he gulped bitterly, “tame them as a kind of... well, a status symbol. People call them `Dragon Ladies´ - maybe you’ve heard that somewhere.”
Ryo nodded eagerly. “Yes, yes, I...” he stopped for a moment, yet again trying to inspect the boy, but he could only see him leaving, hurrying after his... mistress. “So, he’s really a dragon?”
Koichi nodded sadly.
“It should really be forbidden to do that,” Ryo muttered.
“It is,” Koichi told him. When the younger man gave him a quizzical look, he sneered. “Well, let’s say there’s a loophole in every law. What they do might be... despicable, but they won’t get charged for it.”



“Why not?”
“Because the dragon will always be in the weaker position here,” Koichi explained. “They can be quite dangerous creatures, you know. So, naturally, people fear them. Not that they usually invade our territory, but still... the majority seems to think that a dragon is safer when it’s been tamed, which, in my opinion, is really just nonsense, but you know...”
“What kind of creatures are dragons anyway?” Ryo asked, seemingly interested.
“Ah,” Koichi nodded, “that’s a very good question. As I pointed out before, they are not human. But then, humans are not the only creatures in this world, who can gain and provide energy.”
“So, animals and such, they collect energy too,” Ryo mused.



“They more like `store´ it,” Koichi explained. “You see, they do not absorb energy like humans do during transformation. They keep it hidden, until they either see themselves confronted in a way that they have to use it to protect themselves, or until they’ve found enough energy that will fit together to let them... well, I’m actually not sure what exactly happens. It’s not really a transformation as we know it. Again, they do not absorb energy, they simply... I don’t know how to say it. They just... keep it around,” he shrugged.
“But they change their form,” Ryo mused.
“They often change form,” Koichi told him. “That has nothing to do with levels.”
“But then, when does a dragon become a dragon?”



“The moment he decides to,” Koichi stated simply. “There is no... special point where they will inevitably transform. There is a point where it will be possible for them, but that doesn’t mean that they transform into a dragon. Mainly they will do it out of necessity. As I’ve said before. You know, when they have to protect themselves. Dragons are elemental creatures and they can handle their energy very well.”
“I still don’t get it,” Ryo sighed.



Koichi smiled. “Look,” he said. “Let’s say, you eat a certain plant and that will give you energy and it’s water-elemental.” He pulled out a small blue pearl from a drawer in his desk. “And then, some time later, you will drink water and get energy from that too.” He added another pearl. “Then, maybe, you’ll dig a small hole to sleep in and gain energy from that.” He pulled out a green looking pearl. “Everything will give you energy. And once you’ve collected enough energy of a certain kind,” he explained, putting several more blue pearls out, “you will be able to use them for something bigger. You know, you can use the smaller energy parts together. It doesn’t mean you have to. But if you find yourself confronted with, let’s say a creature that is much bigger and threatening you, you will take the energy, combine it and create something new with it.” Koichi put all the blue pears back in the drawer and brought out a single bigger one. You see, the rest of the energy is still the same as before. That’s why dragons are elemental creatures. After this has happened, they can still store energy of all kind,” Koichi pulled out several more small pearls in green, red and purple, “but they cannot transform it.”



“So they can use it, but not... combine it?” Ryo asked.
“Exactly,” Koichi confirmed. “They can only add to what they’ve chosen. Water, in this case. So, this will be a water dragon. They can do the most amazing things in their chosen element, but for the rest, they will always be limited. That’s why they cannot reach other levels, like we do. There is no elemental specific transformation.”
“So they cannot move on?” Ryo asked, sounding troubled.
“I am very sure that they do,” Koichi opposed. “I just don’t know how they do it,” he admitted with a grin.
“Just one more question... Why would someone want to keep a dragon?”



“Ah, well,” Koichi muttered, scratching his neck. “You know, dragons are rare creatures. They are actually fundamentally kind, but they obtain raw powers. I guess they are easy to attract and once you’ve branded them they will feel quite attached to you. It’s quite sad. Once you’ve mastered a dragon’s mind, it will follow you forever. He could roast that arrogant bitch within the blink of an eye. And yet... and no matter how she would treat him...”
Ryo gulped at his trainer’s tone. “Is it...?”
“You know, there are people, who befriend with dragons and thus get their support. That, however, is a very rare thing. For the main part, and the label `Dragon Lady´ for the mistress means exactly that, they are pets. Meant to serve. In every sense of the word.”
“But...” Ryo stuttered. “He is... I mean, he’s...”



“Young,” Koichi finished the sentence. “Yuri-kun was a mere few-month-old dragon when she caught him. It’s really... despicable.”
“You don’t like her?”
“I have a general problem with abuse,” Koichi said in an acid tone.
Ryo bit his lip. “Yeah,” he muttered.
“It really is sad,” Koichi continued, “but all we can do is try and give him just these little treats. He is a nice kid, really. And now,” he sighed, “we should get to our new mission. New absorbers...”
“What are absorbers?” Ryo asked, trying to get his brain back into profession mode.



“They are used for transformation,” his trainer explained. “If the energy-level of a spirit is unbalanced, absorbers are used to harmonise the energies. They absorb what the spirit cannot take and thus relieve it of unnecessary (ballast).”
“Ah, okay,” Ryo nodded. “And where do we get them?”
“Ah, that’s a bit tricky,” Koichi told him, scratching the back of his neck. “Absorbers aren’t exactly... devices as you might think of them.”
“But?”
“Well, if you define something that grows and has organic development as a living creature...”
“We’re using living creatures?” Ryo asked, sounding shocked.



“You see, it depends on your definition...” Koichi explained vaguely. “You’ll see what I mean.” He gestured for the younger man to follow him. “Just...” he added, sounding a bit awkward, “please don’t think the less of me over what I will do. It’s... just easier this way.”
Ryo merely blinked at him, but followed silently. They moved through several halls and corridors and Ryo thought they actually should have had to reach the back of the admittedly huge building, but his feet already started to hurt when they finally arrived at a small, rather old-looking door that Koichi pulled open. Much to his surprise it turned out that they had indeed reached the backside of the building, as the door led not into another room, but outside, if not onto the street, but seemingly into some kind of cave.



“There’s a reason we have our main quarters right here,” Koichi said mysteriously. “Just follow closely and don’t let yourself get distracted.”
“Distracted?”
“This area is full of creatures that... remember how we talked about mal-transformation?”
“Yeah?”
“Well, quite some of the spirits who didn’t transform successfully hide in here. Some of them are... quite vicious. Just don’t leave my side and nothing will happen.”
Ryo walked right next to Koichi as far as the narrow corridor allowed, or else he followed closely. He had a very disturbing urge to grab for his trainer’s hand for support, but suppressed it effectively. Sure enough, a bit into the cave and about two stair-cases down, some small spheres of light gathered around them.



“Don’t pay attention to them,” Koichi instructed.
At the same time he pulled out a flask and poured a small amount of water into his hand. Next he obviously spirited the water, making it split in tiny little spheres too, floating the air around them. The light spheres followed the little water teasers eagerly, trying to absorb them. Koichi let them hover just a bit and then shot them out into several directions, the light spheres following them and finally leaving them alone again.
“They cannot hurt you, physically,” Koichi explained. “But they can see right into your soul and... do things to your mind. It happens every now and then that people get lost down here because they get what we call `light-blinded´ and don’t find their way back anymore.”
“How big is this place?” Ryo asked, noticing that they just passed a little junction.



“Big enough to get lost in,” Koichi answered vaguely. When Ryo merely looked at him sceptically, he grinned a bit. “Quite honestly? We don’t know. It’s too huge to explore entirely.”
“But... you know where we’re going, right?” Ryo asked, sounding a bit worried.
“Of course,” Koichi assured him, clapping on his shoulder encouragingly.
A small jolt went thought the younger man’s body at the contact. He had avoided physical contact to the best of his abilities, but whenever Koichi got close to him he felt drawn to the other in a disturbing way. Biting his lip to distract himself he noticed that Koichi kept holding on, as if trying to find encouragement. While Ryo was still wondering about that, Koichi stopped their little walk.
“We’re here,” his trainer announced. “Just stay close. And whatever instruction I give you, I want you to listen without asking questions. I will explain everything you want to know once we’re back in the office. Okay?”



Ryo nodded vaguely, watching as Koichi made a few more steps through something that looked like a little tunnel in the stone wall and followed him to come to stand in a small hall. There were dripstones everywhere and then his eyes caught sight of glittering crystals. As he kept following Koichi through the somewhat bizarre, if beautiful setting he stared when they reached a rather large stone on which a young woman was sitting. A small waterfall was raining down right behind her and she caught the water with her hands and spread it over stones and crystals in a pattern that looked rather complex. The young woman saw them and her eyes narrowed immediately, but then she seemed to recognise Koichi, which obviously made her relax.
“Hi, Lilly,” Koichi greeted her casually.
“Are you here to steal from me?” the woman asked, still sounding wary.



“No,” Koichi answered, shaking his head. “That is never what I mean to do, you should know that by now. I was hoping, though, maybe you will let me have… two or three?”
“You always only come for my babies,” the woman sobbed.
Koichi moved right up to her, palming her face affectionately. “I always come so you won’t get hurt.”
“But you still want to take them,” the woman insisted. “Just like everybody else…”
“You grow the most incredible creatures here, Lilly. If it weren’t for you, there’d be so many more lost souls.”
Ryo stared as he watched how Koichi kissed the young woman’s cheek softly.
“Such as myself,” the woman answered, her voice full of sorrow.



“Lilly, I don’t want to take anything from you. Just… if I give you something back… will you let us have some?”
The woman nodded, but her eyes shone with unshed tears. Koichi pecked her softly once more before retreating. The woman watched him intensely as he went up to one of the wet stone walls and grasped one of the shining crystals. Ryo watched in interest as well and stared as he saw how Koichi rather easily pulled the crystal from the wall without breaking it – just as though it had merely been in a small slot to be pulled out from. Koichi repeated that two more times and finally walked over to Ryo to hand him three unharmed crystals.
“Take good care of them,” he instructed. “I want you to go back through the gate and wait outside. Don’t be afraid, other creatures never come to this area. I’ll be with you in a while.”



Ryo wanted to burst at least a dozen questions out to him, but he remembered how Koichi had very explicitly instructed him on refraining to do so. Thus, he merely nodded and carefully carried the crystals out. He sat down on the floor and waited for Koichi. Every now and then he could hear noises. Noises that confirmed his feelings on what would be going on in there. He shuddered slightly. Why did Koichi…? It felt like a small eternity to him before Koichi finally appeared next to him.
“Let’s get back, shall we?” he stated flatly, avoiding Ryo’s eyes as he set out.
Ryo followed silently trying to calm himself. He was still holding the crystals, gripping them tightly. Suddenly he blinked.
“Wait,” he muttered, “you said `living creatures´.”



“I said,” Koichi corrected him, “it depends on your definition. These are organic creatures. They grow, more or less quickly, depending on how you… well, feed them, I suppose, but they do grow and they have organic characteristics. We also have to hurry, because if we don’t bring them to their new home within at least one hour, they’re going to die. They need nourishment.”


___________________________________________________________________________________



Ryo had a million questions in his head. The fact that the crystals he and Koichi had brought to the transformation area were as easily fit into the stone walls there as Koichi had pulled them out down in the cave was only bugging him very slightly. Way more present in his head were questions about the woman they had seen down there and what Koichi had been doing with her – and why.
“It’s okay to ask questions,” Koichi told him, after feeling unnerved by his apprentice staring him down.
“Who was that woman?” Ryo finally asked.
“Do you remember Yuri-kun from this morning?” Koichi asked back. “Same as him, she is not really a woman. Not a human woman, at any rate.”



“So, she’s a dragon too?” Ryo burst out.
Koichi, however, waved him off. “No, no. No such thing. Being a dragon she could hardly survive down there. Dragons are creatures of light. If they don’t have sun, they die. She is… well, I don’t really know how she came to be. She’s been there for a very, very long time. Much longer than I’ve been a collector. Absorbers are used for transformation since… well, a very long time.”
“And she grows them,” Ryo wanted to confirm.
“That’s right,” Koichi nodded. “She grows these special crystals and inspires them with the most amazing gift. We don’t really know how it works. But it works.”
“But she doesn’t want to give them away,” Ryo analysed.



“You have to understand…” Koichi explained to him. “She does that so she won’t be alone. She is growing them with all her love. To her, they really are her children. So, naturally she doesn’t like them taken away from her, even though she knows we don’t hurt them.”
“But… they must get damaged at some point, right? I mean, otherwise you wouldn’t have to replace them,” Ryo argued.
“They are under a certain development,” Koichi nodded. “At a certain point their energies just… well, during transformation, it happens a lot that their energies go into it. And well, just as everybody else, they do have a limit. It’s not like they `die´. Their energy just… transforms completely, bit by bit. But we have to replace them every now and then, yes.”



“And then you go and seek her out.”
“She is the only one, who is able to bring forth such creatures,” Koichi explained.
“Which is why she can demand as she pleases,” Ryo finally spat out.
Koichi sighed. “Finally, to the point. Ryo listen… You might not understand it. It’s not like she’s forcing me…”
“So you want to… what exactly did you do with her?” Ryo asked, sounding upset.
“I… I gave her pleasure. And at the very least I do it of my own free will. I could just take the absorbers away without regarding her, but I just can’t do it. The fact that she keeps accepting my… offer is due to the fact that she doesn’t have anyone to be close to.”
“Well, I guess that’s rotten luck,” Ryo stated, “but why doesn’t she…”



“No, you don’t understand,” Koichi interrupted him. “There is not a single other creature like her. She really is… one of a kind. She can’t find a mate, because she is… unique. She really is alone. So I’m offering her just a little bit. It’s not much that I can do for her. But just imagine how lonely it has to be… to be the only one and nobody by your side… and the only love that you spread keeps being taken away from you.”
Ryo bit his lip. “That…”
Koichi sighed. “I never had someone come down there with me. It’s just… how I do it.”
“Okay,” Ryo finally nodded. “I see.”
“Good.”
“Just… what is she, then?” Ryo wanted to know.



“Just what I called her,” Koichi explained. “She really is a lily. She was once spirited by a lost soul and grew the way she did.”
“So, she is a flower?”
Koichi merely nodded.
Ryo tilted his head, thinking. “How do you have sex with a flower?”
“That is not something I wish to discuss,” Koichi decided and grabbed for his book. “Time we started our regular work today. You coming?”
“Ah, yes.”


_______________________________________________________________________________



Tsuyoshi was strolling down the street. He had decided to take some time for himself, thinking over his relationship with Koichi and where they were headed. It had shocked him quite some that Koichi had so easily stolen information for him. Not that he was not happy that his lover was concerned for him, it just felt wrong to burden him like that, even though it had been Koichi’s own decision.
“Hey there, handsome,” he heard someone calling out.
Tsuyoshi turned around and blinked in surprise to find another hunter of his group behind him.
“You’re not invading, are you?” the young man joked.
“I’m not hunting, Tsubasa,” Tsuyoshi explained. “I didn’t even really care where I’m going.”



“Leader-san has already called for us to be more cautious,” Tsubasa muttered. “Somehow the section for Legal Infliction took notice of us.”
Tsuyoshi flinched slightly.
“What?” Tsubasa asked, quirking a brow in curiosity. “You too had contact with one of them?”
“Ah, you would call it contact, I guess...” Tsuyoshi sneered sarcastically.
Tsubasa blinked at him. “What, you... are you telling me... you’re involved with someone like that?”
“Don’t tell anyone about it,” Tsuyoshi requested.
“Does Okada know?” Tsubasa asked immediately.



“Doesn’t he always?” Tsuyoshi sighed.
“You should just dump him for good,” Tsubasa commented.
“I can’t,” Tsuyoshi told him, shaking his head. “I love him. And... I know it’s selfish, but he knows. He knows he can’t have me and yet he is still by my side and I won’t tell him to leave, because I need him there.”
“Well, you’ve got to do that your own way,” Tsubasa shrugged. “Just be careful with that official guy.”
“Not to worry,” Tsuyoshi waved him off. “I have him quite head over heels and the more I learn about him, the more I get the impression he’s not exactly a neat little kid.”



“Why, that’s good to know,” Tsubasa grinned. “So long as he won’t get you in trouble.”
“On the contrary,” Tsuyoshi smiled. “He’s been taking trouble on because of me.”
“Oh?” Tsubasa blinked.
Then their attention was captured by a loud crashing sound. Two cars had collided on the middle of a crossing, obviously with good speed. People standing around were screaming, shocked by the incident. Tsuyoshi’s eyes grew wide.
“Lucky,” Tsubasa stated merrily. “I’ve been out for 30 minutes only. See you later, Tsuyoshi-kun.”



With that he waved his good-bye and made to get a spirit. Sure enough Tsuyoshi spotted a young woman crawling out of one of the vehicles. He assumed she was dead since none of the people standing by took any note of her, plus, she looked completely unharmed. He watched as Tsubasa made his move, grabbing the woman and starting to absorb her energy. His eyes swayed about nervously, checking for a collector that might have been around. After their new arrangement Tsuyoshi avoided Koichi’s working area, but when a virgin spirit emerged, a collector was never far off. Not that he could be sure. It wasn’t even likely that this one was a “new soul”. But in times like these one couldn’t be careful enough.




Checking back with Tsubasa, he saw his team mate chasing after the spirit, which had somehow freed itself. Tsuyoshi bit his lip. Hunting had to be quick. If you lost track of a soul, it was better to just let it go and get another one. Tsubasa had obviously lost sight of his victim, which had very cleverly tried to blend into the mass of people standing around the accident. From afar the horn of the ambulance could be heard. The spirit left the throng of people again and swiftly ran to hide in a small side way. Once again Tsuyoshi considered his options. Somehow his guts started to twist when he heard silent sobbing in the street behind him. Koichi's words echoed in his head.



“Many of them are then happy to move on.”



“I’d hate you, had you forced my spirit into your body.”




All of a sudden Tsuyoshi moved very quickly. He slid into the little side way. The spirit jumped, looking terrified.
“Don’t be scared,” Tsuyoshi said quickly. “I’m here to help you. Follow me, I’ll take you... to a safe place.”
“Someone attacked me,” the woman sobbed.
“I know. But don’t be scared. He won’t harm you, okay? I’ll protect you. But we have to leave. Take my hand,” he instructed.
Obviously, the woman was beyond thought and simply grabbed onto him, so Tsuyoshi simply caught her into the stream and moved them away from the scene... and close to Koichi’s office. He had promised the other that he wouldn’t come anymore, but...
“Who are you?” the woman asked, staring at him.



“I... ah...” Tsuyoshi stuttered. “Do you know this place?”
The woman merely shook her head.
“I wonder where your collector is...” Tsuyoshi muttered. Then he shook his head. “Well, whatever. Come on, in here.”
The woman, however, would not move. She checked her surroundings, looking rather scared.
“Where am I? What happened. Who... are you?” she asked again.
Tsuyoshi looked back at her scared face. “Look... I don’t really know what to tell you. You were involved in a car crash and... you died.”
“I died?” the woman shrieked.
“I’m sorry,” Tsuyoshi mumbled. “That is what happened. We are here now to give you the chance of moving on.”
“Moving on?”



“Into a new life,” Tsuyoshi explained.
“What about my old one?” the woman asked, sounding sad.
“That one you have lived,” Tsuyoshi told her. “There is nothing more to do, trust me on that. You’ll have... new tasks and experiences.”
“But... I don’t know where I’m going,” the woman opposed. “What if I don’t like it there?”
“Then you dramatically through yourself from the highest building in your area that’ll give you one hell of a headline and you come back here. I’ll be waiting for you.”
At first the woman blinked at him, but then she laughed slightly. “It’s a date, then.”



Tsuyoshi nodded at her with a smile and gestured for her to move on into the building. His stomach started to do flips. If Koichi saw him things might get difficult. If that little student of his saw him, things might really get out of hand. If he slipped something delicate...



Oh dear, I’m well in for trouble...



“Hey, there,” the secretary greeted him as they reached his counter. “How may I help you?”
“Ah,” Tsuyoshi mumbled, scratching his neck, “I... I have someone here for transformation.”
Shige eyed him sceptically. “Do I know you?”
“Hardly,” Tsuyoshi told him, “since I’m not working here.”
“Then how...?”
“There was a car crash,” Tsuyoshi interrupted the other, so he wouldn’t get awkward questions. “A hunter was on the scene, but I didn’t see her collector. So I grabbed her and brought her here.”



“There was no collector on the site?” Shige asked frowning. He scribbled something onto a small card. “First, thank you for taking the initiative, that’s really something. But I’ll need you to see the head of our section. If you will please move right on in there,” Shige requested, pointing at a specific door, “and give him details.”
“Ah, do I have to?” Tsuyoshi asked warily.
“Don’t worry about it,” Shige assured him. “It’s not like he’s very `official´, or anything. Just go right through.”
“Okay, thanks,” Tsuyoshi nodded at the boy and accepted the little sheet.
“Thank you,” the woman called after him. “For taking me here.”
Tsuyoshi smiled back at her. “Don’t get lost again. Next time around, you’ll know where to go.”
The woman nodded and waved him good-bye, then followed Shige to the transformation area.



Tsuyoshi sighed as he moved to the door the secretary had shown him. Rather hesitantly he knocked.
“I said no,” he heard an exasperated voice from within.
Tsuyoshi blinked, but then decided to follow the instruction to “simply get in” and opened the door to slip into the room. Once inside he could see Koichi’s friend sitting at a big desk, two young men standing in front of it.
“I’ve told you repeatedly now,” the tall man impressed on one of the others, “you can’t be a dog in your next life. It’s not going to happen, okay? I’ve offered you a range of possibilities, but animals are simply not an option.”
“But I know that my grandmother came back as a cat,” the man insisted. “My friend took her home and I recognised her at first sight.”



“In that case,” the tall man stated, obviously quite done with the discussion, “you’re either totally nuts, or your grandmother had a very bad transformation accident and is not to be envied.”
“But...”
“And that’s the end of it,” the head of the section decided. “I have important work to do. You can stay here and dissolve for all I care. I can’t turn you into a dog, I’m no magician. In case you have interest in moving on, let your collector guide you to the character section and choose a treat, if you like.” Without regarding the man any further, he called out into the room. “Next.”



Tsuyoshi moved forward warily.
“Oh, you,” the man said, eyes growing slightly wider. “You’re Koichi’s friend.”
“Ah... yeah.”
“Tsuyoshi, right?”
Tsuyoshi nodded. “And you are...” he bit his lip.
“Nagase Tomoya,” Nagase grinned.
“Right. Sorry, I... Oh, here,” he muttered quickly, handing him the card he’d been given.
Nagase read it and frowned. “You brought in a spirit?” he asked.
“Well... yeah.”



“Where did you find it?”
“On Sukiyabashi crossing in Ginza,” Tsuyoshi said truthfully.
Nagase went to his desk, checking a few papers. His frown deepened.
“Kamenashi-kun was supposed to do a job there tonight,” he muttered.
Next the man shot up from his position and rushed out the door. Tsuyoshi watched him, rather shocked, then followed him.
“Has Kamenashi reported back yet?” Nagase called out.
Shige checked his book. “Er... no. Not yet.”



When Nagase finally reached the counter, he shook his head. “Something might have happened. Send someone to go looking for him.”
Shige’s eyes widened, but he nodded quickly. “Okay.”
“Thank you for coming,” Nagase addressed Tsuyoshi once more. “You might not have saved a lost soul alone, but also a lost collector.”
“Not a problem,” Tsuyoshi waved him off. “Ah, do you still need me here?”
“No,” Nagase sighed, trying to smile at him. “You can wait for Koichi, though. I expect he’ll be back soon.”



“Thanks,” Tsuyoshi said with a polite bow, “but I’ve got to be on my way. I’m rather busy today and... I’ve got to get going.”
“Well, at any rate, thank you so much for coming.”
Tsuyoshi felt rather awkward when the taller man bowed to him. He nodded back once more, then quickly turned around and fled as fast as he could. Once outside he sighed in relief.
“Oh dear...”

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Hoots for Tsuyoshi. \(^o^)/ Isn't he so sweet? ^^ Too bad I have to make a cut here. The next part is on my computer at work and I can't get a hold of it now. Well, that's for a next time, then. I hope you liked it. Next is going to have some more KinKi interaction again. Ryo is going to get some good job and Yuri will make another appearance. Thank you for reading!!!!! <333333

Chapter 7

Chapter 9