****++++....____....++++****
I owed my life to these two men. Two? Well, I didn’t quite sure myself that I was facing two different men. Well, since they had two different personalities, and they stood in two different places at the same time, I couldn’t count “him” as one person. But something inside those “two” made me think the otherwise. Confused?
Moreover, “he” called himself Kouyou the Joker, and Takashima the Albino Joker. Was it already confusing enough? Add it with "his" mission in hunting down people called “The Arcana”.
“Who are they?” I asked.
“They are… how did you explain it, Joker-honey?” That was Albino Joker.
Well, don’t imagine any ‘whity’ things for his ‘Albino’ name. In fact, this guy was more like some kind of mafia or something alike; for me at least. He wears this black fedora, black lipstick (what was he thinking about when he wore it?); he wore black gloves (with few rings on his fingers; outside his gloves), black coat (with tiny white lines) and black leather vest.
The only white things he wore were just that white shirt and a white shawl over his neck. The trouser he wore was also black and had the same white lines pattern; just like his coat. The black leather high-heels shoes made him look a little androgynous. He always brought this black cane with him, and he smoked a cigar. He DID has this flamboyant way of talking (and walking too if I may add), but he wasn't that effeminate type of person. He’s perfectly manly if you ever saw him beat his enemy.
Yup, that’s Albino Joker - or ‘Albi’ for short. And he wants me to call him ‘Takashima’. And I still don’t get it why did he choose to use “Albino” as his name in the first place?
Well, anyway, Takashima is as manly as his other self, mm, I mean ‘partner’, Joker.
“Joker-honey?” Takashima called.
“Stop it.”
“Oh, you are SO not romantic,” Takashima smiled.
“Shut up, Albi.”
“Hey, I thought I’ve told you to call me ‘Takashima’?”
“That’s the same reason I want you to stop calling me ‘Joker’.”
“But you-”
“Hellooooo??” Aoi called.
“Oh, I’m sorry, Darling,” said Takashima as he returned his gaze to me. “So, The Arcana is a big power, a STRANGE one.”
“Similar with the one that we lent to you, Aoi-san,” Joker said.
I looked at Joker. “Drop the ‘-san’, please.”
“I won’t.”
I sighed.
Now this one is Joker. He has the same brunette colored hair as Albi-I mean Takashima. Only Joker’s was a little bit reddish. Takashima said; a red thing around Joker’s eyes is his energy aura. It keeps fluorescent like that for there’s too many energy that Joker bear inside his body.
This Joker-guy, wear a lot of accessories; around his neck, on his fingers, everywhere. I’ve just realize it that he wore silver (and a gold) rings in -almost- ALL of his fingers, few bracelets, earrings, and four necklaces (if I’m not mistaken).
If Takashima is a ‘black person’, this Joker-guy is more a ‘reddish person’. With his reddish-brunette hair and his red long-coat (I think it was serpent leather or something), he looks like a walking flame. Or flare? Whatever. You got what I mean, right?
So, that’s the Joker and you can call him ‘Kouyou’.
“So-“ Kouyou continued. “Those Arcana power are dangerous if the one who bears it can’t control the power, or tempted to use it for wrong term.”
“Such as?” Aoi asked.
“Kill you.”
____....++++****++++….____
Title : Night of the Hunter
Chapter : 00/??
Author :
kei_kyuuketsukiFandom : the GazettE (more to come)
Pairings : UruhaXAoi, KouyouXAoi, TakashimaXAoi (confused? *chuckled*)
Theme Song : all 30 Seconds to Mars songs from their “This is War” album
Rating : R
Genre : AU, fantasy, action, romance
Warning : complex situation, ambiguities, figurative words, bad English
Disclaimer : I don’t own the boys. They belong to themselves. The bands belong to their company. I adapted the main idea of the story from CLAMPS’s CARD CAPTOR SAKURA. I only fitted the main idea of the story with new settings and - of course - new characters. That’s all.
Summary : those powers have ‘minds’. ‘They’ can think. They rebelled. They wanted to be free, yet they need humans to be their host. Not all the people were able to bear such a power. Several of those people turned mad and became a menace to the world. That is what Aoi had to deal with. As some kind of guardian, Kouyou and Takashima are there to help Aoi whenever the boy needs them…or was it the contrary?
Comment : I hope a little explanation before this “heading” won’t be some kind of interference. I usually started new fanfic this way (in my Facebook). It’s the little prologue from the whole one. Well then, shall we continue the story? *chuckled*...happy reading! ;D
00. Prologue: Introduction
We were talking in my room in my small apartment. You know? My apartment was actually enough for me alone. But since these two guys arrived, this apartment becomes so narrow.
I was sitting near my bed as I listened to those two men’s explanation. Kouyou was just lean on the wall, and Takashima was never stay still at one spot. At the same time, he could talk and walk from my front door, to near the bathroom door, come near me; then walk to another place, and so on, and so on.
How did we meet? There’s this accident that almost sent me to ‘another world’. A kid was playing a ball on the pavement. You know that’s dangerous, right? As I thought before, the ball slip, and bouncing to the road. And another ‘as I thought before’, the kid ran to the road to take the ball. AND another ‘as I thought before’, there’s this truck that coming so fast. As I was the one who saw it, I just ran toward the kid and push him back to the pavement. As the result, I’m the one who was stood right in front of the truck.
(OK, another) As I thought that moment, I was going to die. I just closed my eyes and accepted my fate that day. But ‘something’ pulled me into some haze, and a moment later I realized I was standing on a beach.
Beach?
I just didn’t know how I get there. Well, until this moment on, I still don’t know how I could get there. All I know that moment was; at the beach, I see these two guys, standing at my right and left. They asked me about this “sacrifice” things, and the moment after that, I nodded at the agreement they gave me.
After that, when I opened my eyes, I was already lying on the pavement. Those two men I saw at the beach were there staring at me. Behind them, there were a lot of people looking at me. Some of them were asking me whether I’m ok or not.
I remembered that I wanted to help the kid who wanted to take the ball from the road. I remembered the truck that almost hit me. I thought that was why I lied on the pavement at that moment, and these two guys were the people who helped me.
I wasn’t quite sure with what has happened back then. These two guys explained to me that we’re talking when I was unconscious. How could it happen? The 'beach' was my ‘subconscious world’ or something like that. OK, this is so confusing for me myself.
That accident happened more than a week ago and, so here we are, talking about this Arcana thing, after I agreed in helping them to find those powers.
“Why they have to kill me?” I asked after I heard Kouyou’s answer before.
“Kouyou-honey here was just giving you the example, Darling,” Takashima answered. “That was one example that The Arcana can do to you, or to other people. They can do almost all destructive things in the world, Darling,” Takashima explained as he patted Kouyou’s shoulder.
“Why would they do that?”
“No one knows,” Kouyou answered. “That was either their hidden desire or their incapability in controlling the power.”
“The power could actually drive them mad,” Takashima added with a whisper.
“I still don’t get it,” I waved my hands in the air. “Where are those Arcana power came from? Outer space? I’ve never heard about it before. There’s no way someone could actually made something like that, right?”
“Hey, I kind of like his way of thinking,” Takashima said as he pointed at me with his cigar.
“It’s not something from outer space, Aoi-san. That power is not an alien thing. So, yes, someone COULD actually make something like that.”
Oh, by the way, do you still finding hard to tell which Kouyou is and which is Takashima? The easiest way is from the way they call me. Takashima will usually use “Darling” to call me. In the other hand, Kouyou is the polite one. I kept telling him to call me without using “-san”. You know, it’s really weird to hear someone at your age calling you with polite names. But Kouyou just don’t want to listen to me. Then again, I doubt that these two men are the same age as me.
“Really..? Who was stupid enough to make that kind of power?”
I saw Takashima looked at Kouyou. “Well, it wasn’t for bad purposes actually,” he said hesitatingly.
“What? Why? You know the person who made it?”
“Not in personal,” Kouyou answered.
“Then why were you guys looking for it? It’s not you who responsible for it, right?”
“Can you actually sit down, watching and just let it happen before your very eyes, Darling?”
“But you involved me!”
“You said you owed us your life…” Kouyou said in a flat tone.
“Well…” I scratched my un-itchy head.
“So we have a deal!” Takashima claimed as he came and pinched my cheek. “Oh, I love smart boy like you.”
“Stop it!” I yelled and caress my cheeks. “So, the Arcana power spread to all over the world or something? ‘Cause you know, I don’t have any passport to go out from this country and all…”
“You don’t have to worry about that. We’ve detected that all the Arcanas were in this country,” Kouyou explained.
“Ironically, they’re in this city too! I’ve been wondering why they gathered in this city…” Takashima said as he touched his own chin; thinking, I think.
“When did all of this happen? I mean the spreading Arcana power?”
“About a month ago,” Kouyou answered.
“What triggered it? I mean, when I saw one of it-” I looked at The Magician card in my hand. It’s the first card in Major Arcana decks. I got this after I fought with someone who got trance with this power. He told me that he was the Magician, and, man, I didn’t know that I had to fight that way. “-I think that this power is a living thing…”
“They are…” Takashima said as he exhaled a smoke from his mouth. “They wanted to be free, and live far, far away from their creator.”
“It seems like I was listening into some kind of rebellions or something…”
“It is,” Kouyou answered.
“Well, it’s not entirely their fault either, actually…” Takashima added.
“What?” The more I listen to these two guys, the more I don’t get the story.
“You’ll understand this… one day…” Takashima smiled at me. I can’t see his actual expression for his sunglasses keep preventing me from looking straight to his eyes.
“Hey…” I called. “If I’m not mistaken… there are… still twenty-one more power, right? These Arcana things…”
“Yes,” Kouyou answered.
“So… I have to face them all?”
“We’re right here beside you, Darling.”
“Am I going to be alright?”
“We guarantee you, Aoi-san,” Kouyou patted my shoulder. Somehow, it calms me more than I expected.
And suddenly, I heard this kind of chiming sound. It’s like a bell. It’s echoing. It sounded like coming from the other world. It’s weird, felt unreal, but it’s real alright. It was the same chiming sound like I heard before I met The Magician few days ago.
“You hear that, Darling?”
“Y-yeah…” I hesitate. “Who is it this time?”
“Can you sense it?”
I close my eyes. The sight was a blur, but slowly a number appeared in the darkness. The number glows in light blue color. “I saw number two written in the darkness... still, in Romanian letter…”
“Second trump of Major Arcana in Tarot decks… The High Priestess…” Takashima said.
“It’ll be a little hard,” Kouyou said.
“What!?” I’m shock. “B-but why..!? Priestess means the bearer of this power is a girl, right!?”
“Yes, Darling. But do you ever deal with divine-related-girl?”
“What!?” Another shock. “Wh-what’s that?!”
“It means she is either a VERY smart girl, or a girl with a VERY high pride, or both.”
“Then what’s bad about it!?” I asked.
“Do you want her to turn this world into a giant puzzle, Darling?”
“Eh!?”
“This Arcana power holds an amount mystery inside her small palm. Come on,” Kouyou patted my back. “We’ve got to get going before you can’t go anywhere out of this city because of her.”
Kouyou then grabbed my collar and pulled me out of the room. Behind me, Takashima followed us with his famous-flamboyant way of walking.
*
And, here we are, in a front yard of a high-school. Oh, haven’t I told you lately? These Arcanas people usually started to make a mess after the sun goes down. Kouyou said; it’s easier to work that way, when humans are already asleep and they are free to do anything they want.
How do we get here? This high-school is way too far from my apartment. I need half an hour to get here with my small old-motorbike. But we just need less than ten minutes because…
We’re flying.
Kouyou fly, he’s taking me with him like a cat taking her kitty with her. Behind us, Takashima sat on his cane with that aristocrat way of sitting and lit another cigar. Yes, that is his style of flying.
After we reach this place where the second Arcana power detected, Kouyou lowered his flight and dropped me to the ground. My heart beats like crazy.
“Why didn’t you tell me earlier that we’re going to fly?!”
“I don’t have time to do it. Come on. She’s already starting her arts.” Again, Kouyou pulled my collar.
“Haste people…” Takashima sighed a smoke and followed us.
We walked to the entrance door of the main building of the school. “Wait! There’s no way we can enter this building! It’s locked at a time like this!” I protested.
“Who are you people?” asked a voice suddenly. It’s a girl voice, and I don’t know where it came from.
“Was that…?” I asked hesitatingly.
“Yes. That’s The High Priestess,” Kouyou answered.
“Tell her, Darling.”
“What..!?” I protested with a whisper. “Why me!?”
“She won’t like it if she knew that the Jokers are here,” Kouyou explained. “Go on. It’s okay. Answer her.”
“How could you be so calm facing all of this..!?” I’m still whispering.
“WHO ARE YOU PEOPLE!?” The voice repeated her question in a louder voice. It was loud enough to make the windows all over the school building trembling.
“Answer, Aoi-san. It’s one of her quizzes.”
“QUIZZES..!?”
“WRONG ANSWER!!” The voice shouted.
What happened after that was a big shock. A wall suddenly arises between me and Kouyou and Takashima. The wall touching the ceiling, and blocking my way neither to Kouyou or Takashima.
“Kouyou!!” I called, hitting the wall few times. “Kouyou!! Takashima!! Where’re you guys!! Answer me!!”
“You have no rights in asking question here,” said the voice.
“What..!?” I didn't believe with what she said. What was that about?
“Each wrong answer will send you to the center of the earth…”
“This is crazy…”
“Again, Young man. Answer me. Who are you?”
“I…” It’s really hard to find a proper answer at a situation like this. What kind of answer she want actually? But of course I can’t ask her. One more question then the floor I stepped on might vanish, I think. “I… I’m Aoi..!” I answered it just with the word that crossed in my mind.
Suddenly, I heard a key unlatched near me. I look around, and what I found is the entrance door into the main building of the school. The door was unlocked.
What should I do now? Is it wise to step into the building? Alone? Where will she lead me? How will I face all of this without Kouyou or Takashima? Can I face it alone?
I really want to ask those questions. I wanted to scream and let Kouyou or Takashima find me by my voice. But I just can’t take the risk, can I? Another wall might arises somewhere, or either the floor vanished, all of it is still not a good thing that I want to see.
“Walk, Darling…” It’s Takashima. “You’re doing just fine. Don’t say anything if she doesn’t ask you. Answer all of her questions with correct answer, and you might fine where she is. After you find her, you know what to do, right?”
I nodded. I don’t know what else can I do right now. I’m just hoping that Takashima could see me nodded.
“We’re not going to leave you. Your correct answers might set me and Kouyou free too…”
What!? Takashima is not with Kouyou!? So they got separated too?
“It’s ok, Darling. We believe in you. I’m very sorry that we won’t be able to help you for tonight…” Takashima explained. “Remember, Aoi. The dark sky is the limit. We won’t be able to do anything if the sun rises before it’s over. Stay calm. And we know that you can do this.”
I nodded again, for mere formality. I looked at the entrance door again. I took a deep breath before exhales it slowly. “You just have to answer the question, Aoi,” I’m convincing myself, whispering. “You just have to answer…”
=to be continued…=
____....++++****++++….____
A/N: THERE! I’ll wrap it like this. So, how do you think about my new chaptered-fanfic? As I said at the header, I took the concept from CLAMP’s CARD CAPTOR SAKURA. It’s about taking back some “force” and turned into a card.
Oh, by the way, I’m using Uruha’s new image in RR. Have you seen it? For me, he really looks like a mafia with that black suit. *chuckled*get slapped..xD* And he looks so cool in the red one! b(>w<)d
I know it might be not very clear at this chapter, but I promise I’ll give the explanation little by little as the story involved. So, I really, really, really need your critics and comments about this story. I’ll try my best to update it periodically.
Again, your critics and comments are SO MUCH LUV! ~♥ thank you very much! :-*