Into the Night chapter 9 Part B
Into the Night
Author : Pooobaihr
Beta: shullieq
Chapters: 9 part B / 9 + Epilogue
Pairings : (in this ch.) Uruha/Kai (onesided), Kai/OFC, Reita/OFC, Ruki/Reita (mentioned) (later)Ruki/Reita , Aoi/Uruha/Kai
Band: the GazettE,
Guests: Dir en grey, Aki (SID) , Tora (Alice Nine)
Genre : AU, Vampires, Horror?, Action (if you squint), smut, slight romance(well..if you squint), Drama
Rating : NC-17
Warnings : (in this chapter) A lot of build up. Not much of anything happening really.
Summary : Reita and Kai are sent undercover to find a serial killer.
Disclaimer : Eatz Ah Lieeya!!
Comments :We're coming to the end~! :) COMMENTS = LOVE!
The muscles in Akira’s jaw flexed, anger building up more. To him, no matter what Captain Nishimura had to say or how he tried to flip it, nothing about the situation made any sense. First he's told Yutaka was involved in a wreck,- when really there was no evidence proving that, aside from the dent in the hood; a dent which no one knew where it came from. Then after said wreck, he was kidnapped. There's mention of bullet shells and blood, just far too many inconsistencies and now he’s being told he cannot help out in the case. Angry wouldn't be the correct word to use for how upset Akira was at this point. "You aren’t seriously asking me to stay out of this case are you?” he accused, raising his voice a notch, shoving his hands in his pockets.
“I'm not asking you to do shit. I'm telling you to stay out of it.” Nishimura sternly replied, “You’re too close to him. We can’t allow your feelings to get in the way of the investigation.”
“How the hell would I get in the way? I'm a cop too, you know. Not some civilian trying to play cops and robbers. I know what it is that I'm supposed to do!” Akira shot back.
“Yeah. And what if we can't find him, Suzuki? What if Uke just disappeared off the face of the earth? Then what happens?” the Captain hissed, leaning over the desk, eyes firmly locked on the other pair, “You can’t tell me that you wouldn't go to any lengths to finding out who did it and why. Shit, you may even resort to looking for just anyone that even remotely has a vendetta against him and try to put them away for his disappearance when really they had nothing to do with it all.”
The detective blinked then, eyes wandering away as he reflected on what his boss said. Yutaka was not only his co-worker. He was his friend. Best Friend. They did just about everything together and not just because work called for them to be around each other on a regular basis. They got along so well, they didn’t mind each others' company but now, in his time of need, Akira wasn’t able to help him. He could feel the tears welling in his eyes. He hated feeling useless.
The Captain slowly stepped back, tucking the folders under his left arm, sweeping a few blond strands from his face. “We go by the book, Suzuki Akira. We’re not screwing this up.”
“Where had I heard that before? Oh yeah, thats right. Before a certain someone went missing. How can I forget.” It wasn't the time for him to be immature, but damn it all if he hated hearing that phrase.
“Yamano and Kichida will be taking over these cases,” Kyo continued, deciding to just ignore Akira. “I’ll be back in a sec with your new case.” He then turned and walked out the door. If Akira could throw a temper tantrum at that moment, he definitely would and not feel ashamed. But as the last few sentences of that conversation played over in his mind, he started thinking.
“What if...” he mumbled, sitting down quickly while taking out his notepad, “What if they had something to do with it..” By they, he meant their current suspects. The ‘trannies in the boonies’, as he liked to call them. There was no evidence of course - well, nothing outside of him having been threatened. Maybe this is what that guy meant by “knowing what’s good for him”. It was possible. It made more sense than what the Captain was coming up with. Then again, why would he have been the one to be threatened and not Yutaka? Tapping his pen on the notepad, he thought back to everything that happened over the past few weeks. The murders, all the evidence and the suspects themselves.
All of the victims were chosen at random. They ranged from male to female, ages all across the board. There was no blood found at the scene of the crimes - something that Akira was more than happy to scratch off his list of ‘connecting evidence’. Semen had also been found on many of the victims, that unfortunately couldn't be traced. Same with hair that belonged to the suspects and fingerprints. Akira cursed under his breath at the thought of those key pieces of evidence, remembering why such a detail was kept from the media. Nothing could be extracted from them. The fingerprints were as if they belonged to no one. There was no record of them to be found anywhere. The DNA from the hair and semen was dead. Literally. He remembered Toshiya saying how weird it was to see such a thing with living, breathing people. Normally that kind of problem was only heard of in archeology. Often times when scientists found an old set of bones or a mummy, the DNA that they’d extract from it would be so old it was useless. Killed by time. Of course there were times that, when a cold case crime was solved, the DNA from the victim was indiscernible, but those odds were few and far between. There was nothing dead about these suspects. They were living, breathing, murderous people and if it took until Akira breathed his last breath, he swore he’d make sure to get all three locked away for life.
Closing his eyes, he pinched the skin between his eyes, rubbing it gently. He had been staring at his notepad for so long, his eyes began to feel strained. When he opened them again, he realized not a single word had been written down.
“Fuck!” he cursed, tossing his pen on his desk, laying his head down on the cool wood. It was overwhelming.
“Don't be so hard on yourself.” an out of place, calm voice said, "It's not like you knew this would happen. … Damn. My mistake. You did know. So I guess it is your fault." Akira froze in his seat, heart racing in his chest. He knew that voice; could never forget it.
Ruki stood in the doorway of Akira’s office, dressed in an over-sized white sweater, midnight blue jeans and a pair of casual black boots. His usual tight curls were slightly loose, framing his ashen face making him look even younger than before. He smirked at the young detective, swaying on the balls of his feet, inhuman eyes gazing around at the items in the small office. His plan was a simple one. No hard work needed on his end because he knew Akira would take the bait. His pride was too big to let something like this pass up. So when those angry, brown eyes met his playful blue pair, his smirk spread into a childlike smile.
Akira couldn’t believe his eyes. Either this guy was extremely dense or had King Kong sized balls. This was the second time the young brunette trespassed on Police property and both times he felt the need to taunt an armed officer without any fear of being arrested or injured. Even now, as he stood there staring back at the detective with that goofy look on his face, he seemed to be emitting this enormous amount of self confidence. As if it were perfectly normal for him to be standing there. Cocking a brow, Akira let his attention slide a tad to the left, noticing his co-workers were still continuing with their business.
Ruki noticed Akira becoming distracted, following the detectives gaze over his shoulder to the people working diligently in the background. “Isn't it strange how humans react once they found out they've lost something?” His demeanor was laid back, voice drifting in the air with an apologetic tone, "They scatter around like flies. Like they truly cared about whatever was lost, when really they barely even noticed them around from the start." Could it be said that Ruki felt bad for them? At one point in his life, maybe so, but that feeling had long since disappeared.
"What did you do with him?" Akira demanded, voice level rising as he stood from his seat, hand reaching for his gun. His theory was correct; there was no mistaking it now.
"Shut up." Ruki commanded as he faced the detective once more, devilish grin returning when Akira noticed his mouth had betrayed him and did as it was ordered to do. "You don't want your buddies to think you've gone nuts now, do you?" Chuckling lowly, Ruki leaned against the side of the door. He found it hilarious to see the ‘big shot’ officer vulnerable; on his own turf nonetheless. It was even better than the first time, though back then he had stolen a taste of Akira’s essence. Even now, he remembered how good it was. He licked his lips, wanting to have a sample right then, but their current location was a less than desirable place for that kind of...intimacy. Gazing down to his watch, keeping track of time, he looked back towards Akira, who was clearly beginning to have a hard time. “Go ahead and keep at it,” stretching his hands above his head, giving a fake yawn, “You can continue on this route and be locked away for insanity, losing the only chance you’ll ever have at seeing your friend again.”
Naturally this would be the moment for Akira to ask what the other was talking about, what had he done to him, etcetera. Unfortunately, that option was not available for him. He then reached towards his mouth, sticking his index and middle fingers between the crease to pull the flesh apart. Though his skin felt no different, his lips stayed pressed together, like they had been glued shut and no amount of pressure could peel them apart. Frustrated, Akira grabbed his gun and pointed it towards the intruder, grumbling all sorts of threats and curses.
“Oh god Akira, put the gun away. You’re just gonna end up putting someone’s eye out.” the vampire scolded, frowning and wagging his finger at the cop like a disciplining mother. As expected, Akira didn’t listen.
Taking a step or two closer, placing his arms behind his back and clasping his hands together, Ruki snorted before bursting into a fit of laughter. The look on the blond’s face was priceless. His eyes were having a battle of emotions. Whether to keep staring at him with burning fury or look off in bewilderment to assess what was going on. His cheek muscles were spazzing, turning an embarrassed pink shade. Ruki was sure that if he were to touch the other’s face, he would be able to feel the heat radiating off of it. Leaning forward, he took a few more cautious steps closer, humming a soft song that he’d heard Aoi sing to Uruha on countless occasions. Akira’s gun stayed pointed directly at him, following his every move until he finally came to a stop in front of his desk.
“You’re stubborn as a fucking bull, you know that?” Ruki said, placing his palms on the light colored wooden desk, letting himself slide forward until his forehead was stopped by the barrel of the gun, “Every time we meet you want to shove this damn gun in my face. To be honest, I feel quite offended. I have done nothing....... to you.. lately.. that deserves that.” Giggling at the cop’s change of facial features, Ruki moved his head, letting the barrel slide against his cheek. The chill of the metal felt good against his skin, eyes fluttering to a close.
Akira stared wide eyed at the other male, wondering what the hell he was on. Heroin? Meth? Acid??, the list growing longer as a guttural moan began to seep from the brunette’s slightly parted lips. How the hell anyone could get turned on with a gun in their face was touching an area of kink that Akira didn’t even want to imagine. Tired of the antics, Akira lifted his hand, swinging back hard, letting the heel of the gun connect with the left side of Ruki’s head. He may have went too far, but at least he didn't shoot him. That would have been worse.
Ruki knew it was coming. He could hear the idea loud and clear inside Akira’s head and instead of dodging it, he allowed it. On impact, his head jerked violently to the right, making him stagger some. The side of his head stung, as he felt blood start to ooze from an open wound caused by the gun. Ruki didn’t move an inch, only letting - now glowing- blue eyes to settle on his prey.
Akira’s adrenaline had spiked. He saw the wound and the blood and figured the male wouldn't put up much of a fight now that he saw he meant business. He then tried to speak again to let him know that he was under arrest. To tell him the laundry list of charges that were to be brought against him and both of his friends. To ask him, yet again, what he had done to his friend and where to find him. But his mouth still didn’t budge. Feeling at wits end, Akira quickly pushed the barrel of his gun against the cut on Ruki’s head. He pressed down hard, seeing a bubble of blood squeeze from the cut. He screamed behind stone lips the useless dribble he always said to criminals once he had them cuffed. The suspect’s piercing blue eyes were staring back into his own. If this were a Sci-Fi movie, Akira was sure that there would be two holes in the back of his head right now, caused by the lasers that would have sprung from the other’s eyes. But he endured the cold, hard stare, looking back into the icy blue abyss, matching the same intensity.
“Violence is never the answer..” Ruki drawled, the side of his lips tugging into a sneer, “Didn’t your mother ever teach you that?” He heard the muffled comeback and laughed, letting his tongue slide between his lips and lick the blood that had made it to his mouth. He let his sights drift to the phone setting on the desk, spotting the time. He figured it was about time to take this interaction to another location. As he began to straighten himself up, he felt Akira’s resistance to move. He needed to get a little strict.
“Akira,” he began, letting his vampire strength force said man to move with him as he straightened himself to a stand, the wound healing as he did so. He noticed the detective’s confusion. Reading the “How’s” and “Why’s” floating around in his head. It wasn’t a shocker to see the gun moved back to the middle of his forehead or the completely ‘freaked out’ facial expression dawning Akira’s features. With a soft smile, he continued, “Look, I am willing to make a deal with you. But I'm seriously going to need you to put the gun down,” leaning forward, filling his face with fake worry and concern as his eyes moved about sporadically, whispering “People are staring.” Pulling away, Ruki crossed his arms over his chest, releasing the mental hold he had on Akira’s mouth.
By this point Akira had gotten so used to blurting back whatever he wanted to say, that when he heard his own voice actually speaking the words, ‘Quit fucking around!’, he was startled. He wanted to know how the other had did it. How was he able to keep his mouth from moving that whole time? How did the gash heal? Was he some sort of magician? He knew in his heart of hearts that there was no such thing as magic, but he had no other explanation for any of it.
Unfortunately, his brain decided to take matters into its own hands and shifted his eyes to see what the tiny man had meant. Probably wasn't the best decision of his life. Not only was his Captain standing there, new case folder in hand along with someone he had only seen in passing - his temporary partner he assumed, but the two detectives he had spoken to not long ago were standing there as well, mouth agape and unbelieving tomato sized eyes. Panic ran through Akira’s body as he looked back towards his grinning suspect. ‘As much as this guy laughs, he should be a clown instead of giving people hell,’ but he couldn't linger on that thought for too long.
“Is everything ok, Suzuki?” Captian Nishimura questioned, cautiously holding his hands up in the air as if to say he wasn't a threat. The other officers followed suit, mumbling indiscernible words under their breaths, eyes glued on Akira. Akira was speechless, looking back to Ruki, then his gun and returning his confused stare to his co-workers.
“Of course everything is fine!” he said, trying to smile a bit, but feeling it falter some. His suspect was still grinning like a kid about to tell a deep dark secret. He wanted to smack the look right off his face, but he couldn't. Not while the Captain was looking anyways. Just as he opened his mouth to speak, Nishimura cut in, hands still raised, moving slowly into the office.
“Put the gun down, Akira.” the Captain warned.
“What do you mean put the gun down?” he argued, keeping a watchful eye on the perp while taking glances to his boss, “Do you want him to get away?”
“Suzuki, man, listen to the Cap, “ the nerdy detective suggested, wary smile threatening his lips. The tubby one only hummed an agreement, nodding along looking like a deer caught in headlights.
“Are you guys serious? So not only do you NOT want me on this case, but you also want me to allow a suspect, whom I should also say admitted to being a part of Yutaka’s disappearance, get away? Am I hearing this shit right or are my ears fucking failing me?” Akira couldn't believe what was going on. It made no sense what so ever. Why would the Captain ask him to do such a thing? He had their suspect standing right there in the room. He was even ready to turn himself over and now they’re asking him to let the guy go? Turning his burning stare back to Ruki, Akira hissed pressing the gun harder into his skull, “Did you fuck with my ears too, asshole? Huh?”
“I think you need to go home.” Nishimura calmly said.
“What the hell is wrong with you?” Akira argued. Nishimura only shook his head. Ruki giggled softly.
“Clearly Yutaka’s disappearance has started to get to you, Suzuki. I understand. He’s your friend, you want him back. But this is not the way. You need to go home and rest.” the smaller blond kept his eyes locked with Akira’s, nodding slowly as he gently moved his hands down to his sides, “Better yet, take a couple weeks off. Early vacation. You’ll get paid like usual and you can rest up. Let us take care of the cases.”
“But-.. but....” Akira stammered, eying everyone in the room now. His world was falling apart and nothing he did or said could fix it. It was madness. Pure madness. An irritated sigh then left the fugitive. It took everything in his power not to pull the trigger then and there.
“Akira... Akira... Akiraa~” tilting his head back, groaning. This was becoming boring. “Look,” pointing towards the Police Captain, he gave an inviting wave, “He can’t see me. Neither can they,” pointing behind him to the men at the door. Sensing the detective was about to speak again, Ruki held up his hand, wanting him to stay quiet without having to make him. Akira finally obeyed, “I’m not magical, if that's the stupid question you were going to ask. I can't grant you any fairy wishes and I most certainly can’t make shit appear out of thin air. But I can allow you and whomever else, to see what I want you to see.”
He knew the other figured his speech was all bull shit, but it didn’t matter to him. He wanted to know, so he told him, “I'm not going into the science of it all because frankly, I have no damn clue myself. Point is, I have something you want and if you want it, I suggest you come and get it.” Smirking as he turned, headed towards the door, Ruki could feel Akira’s stare at the back of his head. The real fun was about to begin.
Moving past the two cops at the door, he turned around, one finger in the air, “Ah yes, that deal. Well, since you didn’t lower the gun when I asked you, you miss out on that deal. So here’s another one. The game is called Tag, I'm sure you’ve heard of it.” Akira only stared at him as Kyo moved near to take his gun, “If you can catch me, I’ll let you put as many bullets into me as you so please. Deal?” Ruki didn’t want to stand there and wait on a reply, so instead he left, moving through the crowd of bustling cops and crammed desk as fast as possible and exited the front doors.
When Kyo laid his hand on the gun, Akira immediately jerked his hand away, sliding it into its holster on his hip and made a dash for the door. ’ He was right there, RIGHT THERE! And they let him go!’ He ignored the call of his Captain and co-workers, asking where he was going and that he needed to clock out. If it were that important for him to do so, they could do it for him. For now, he needed to catch the guy they let walk right past them.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
After searching each floor of Headquarters, Akira took his search outside the building. His temper flared as he looked from right to left, searching for where Ruki may have went. To his luck, the suspect was nowhere in sight. Scoffing, the blond made a dash for the parking lot, thinking he may find the male there, leaning against his car like he had the first time they met. It was a stretch, but at this point, Akira figured he didn't have much to lose. His boss practically put him on "medical" leave; omitting the word 'medical' in an obvious attempt to not make his mental state any worse than what it already was. He knew he wasn't crazy and the sooner he could catch the curly haired bastard that was playing him for a fool, the sooner he could prove his sanity. Turning into the parking area, Akira caught a glimpse of white blur, speed past his peripheral. He stopped in his tracks, rubbing his eyes thinking for a moment that the Captain may have been right. Maybe he was going crazy and needed the time off. As he moved his hands and gave the parking area a once over, he spotted his target, exactly where he knew he would be.
"There was something I forgot," Ruki said, giving a lopsided smile as he leaned against the detective's car, "I had to level the playing field some." He then gave the bumper of the sports car a hard swat, chuckling at the sound of his flesh smacking the metal, "This chase is just you against me. No one else needs to be involved."
Akira didn’t understand that the shorter meant, but he shook away the thought of asking him, figuring it was pointless; he was cornered. Reaching for his gun, his jaw dropped when his hand only grabbed air. Looking down, he found only an empty space where his gun once sat. Snatching his eyes back to the suspect, Akira hissed, seeing his gun being twirled around the suspects finger.
"Maybe you didn't understand me, Akira," Ruki smiled wider, whistling a tune, stuffing his free hand in his pocket and strolling around the back of the car, "I have no weapons. I have no radio. Just my feet and my hands." It wasn't a lie. Ruki didn't need any weapons; his whole body was a weapon. He then pulled out a small silver and black device. Scheming eyes glancing back to their prey, "I also don't have a phone. Which means you lose it too."
"How the fuck…" Akira began, patting down his pants. There was no way the other male could have his phone. Being able to get his gun was one thing. He could have easily dropped it while he was running, even though he hadn't heard a thing clatter against the pavement, that didn't mean much of anything. He was focused on something more important than just his gun, so it was easy to believe that Ruki had his gun. But his phone? How the hell was he able to get the phone? He hadn't even pocketed it yet. It was still safely secured in his hand, well, from what he knew. Scratching the back of his head, he assumed that he may have accidentally dropped it like he did the gun. It then began to sink in. Maybe the Captain was right. Maybe he did need a vacation. With all the work load and stress, and now dealing with Yutaka’s disappearance, it was starting to fuck with his head.
Ruki tipped his head, sneering as he watched Akira stare off in disbelief. He could barely remember a time where he was feeling the very same emotions the other had. Back when a vampire toyed with his -then human, mind. During that era, humans were avid believers in Gods and Goddesses. Some civilizations even believed these beings would leave their heavenly homes to walk among them, testing the believers faith. Should the deity feel displeased with their followers, the villagers would offer up a human sacrifice to prove their loyalty and how much they appreciate what that God/Goddess did for them. Ruki came from such a tribe. Every so often flickers of that lost time period would make itself known to him. To a normal person, such a thing would steer them away from causing grief on other mortals, but Ruki was different. What happened to him then, only fueled him into becoming the creature he is now.
“Let’s get this show on the road,” Ruki boasted, dropping the phone on the ground and crushing it into pieces with only a slight press of his foot. He removed the clip from the gun, sliding it into his pocket while placing the gun on the trunk of the car, “Since Im going to be on foot, I’ll allow you the use of your car.” Akira arched a brown in complete confusion.
“That doesn't make sense,” he said. “How can you say you’re leveling the playing field, yet I get to use my car? And you take my bullets, but said I could shoot if I caught you?”
“Oh, it makes perfect sense. You’ll get the bullets when you catch me. Wouldn't want some of those babies to ‘accidentally’ get fired off to slow me down,” Ruki chuckled, taking backward steps away from the car, “I’m much faster than you think I am. If you were to chase after me on foot, you’d never catch up and I’d hate to think what would happen if you never found your friend,” rolling his eyes and tapping his chin, as if he were actually trying to think of a scenario, “I mean, I can only hold the little one back for so long. Just a few weeks ago, I had to tell him, ‘Hey, leave him alone.’ But did he listen to me? No. He finds a different way to talk to the guy. Uruha’s a crafty bastard, but I’ve been able to keep him contained.” Gasping, he quickly covered his mouth, watching as the detective’s face twisted in deeper confusion.
Ruki could hear the question in Akira’s mind, causing him to double over in laughter. “You mean to tell me he didn’t tell you? Your FRIEND, Partner, left you out of the biggest news of his life?” He laughed more, watching as the blond made a swift dash in his direction. The Vampire easily dodged him, moving so fast he would appear as only a smudge to human eyes, in hysterics when he heard the other crash into the bumper of the neighboring vehicle. “Looks like you two will have to have a heart to heart when you find him. IF you find him.” And with that, Ruki sped off.
Akira barely blinked before noticing the other had disappeared. He gazed around the lot, hoping to spot him. It wasnt long before he noticed a patch of white against a sea of dark winter coats, a block down the road. ’ If he wants to play, we’ll play.’ he thought to himself as he grabbed the empty gun from the car, shoving it in his holster before opening the door and getting inside. As he stuck the key in the ignition, he was struck with the reality of what Ruki had been saying.
“Leveling the playing field,” he bitterly repeated, eying the smashed radio and torn wires that belonged to his alarm. Naturally, questions of how the other was able to even touch his car without tripping the sensors fluttered in his mind, but he pushed the thoughts back; there were more important things to deal with. Putting the car in reverse, Akira peeled out of parking space and headed off in the direction he had seen Ruki.
A/N: Ooo.. lol I really dont have much to say here. Ruki's fun isnt he? And you kinda see how he came to be what he is now. The fun begins in the next and (hopefully) final part of this chapter.
CHAPTER 10 A
Author : Pooobaihr
Beta: shullieq
Chapters: 9 part B / 9 + Epilogue
Pairings : (in this ch.) Uruha/Kai (onesided), Kai/OFC, Reita/OFC, Ruki/Reita (mentioned) (later)Ruki/Reita , Aoi/Uruha/Kai
Band: the GazettE,
Guests: Dir en grey, Aki (SID) , Tora (Alice Nine)
Genre : AU, Vampires, Horror?, Action (if you squint), smut, slight romance(well..if you squint), Drama
Rating : NC-17
Warnings : (in this chapter) A lot of build up. Not much of anything happening really.
Summary : Reita and Kai are sent undercover to find a serial killer.
Disclaimer : Eatz Ah Lieeya!!
Comments :We're coming to the end~! :) COMMENTS = LOVE!
The muscles in Akira’s jaw flexed, anger building up more. To him, no matter what Captain Nishimura had to say or how he tried to flip it, nothing about the situation made any sense. First he's told Yutaka was involved in a wreck,- when really there was no evidence proving that, aside from the dent in the hood; a dent which no one knew where it came from. Then after said wreck, he was kidnapped. There's mention of bullet shells and blood, just far too many inconsistencies and now he’s being told he cannot help out in the case. Angry wouldn't be the correct word to use for how upset Akira was at this point. "You aren’t seriously asking me to stay out of this case are you?” he accused, raising his voice a notch, shoving his hands in his pockets.
“I'm not asking you to do shit. I'm telling you to stay out of it.” Nishimura sternly replied, “You’re too close to him. We can’t allow your feelings to get in the way of the investigation.”
“How the hell would I get in the way? I'm a cop too, you know. Not some civilian trying to play cops and robbers. I know what it is that I'm supposed to do!” Akira shot back.
“Yeah. And what if we can't find him, Suzuki? What if Uke just disappeared off the face of the earth? Then what happens?” the Captain hissed, leaning over the desk, eyes firmly locked on the other pair, “You can’t tell me that you wouldn't go to any lengths to finding out who did it and why. Shit, you may even resort to looking for just anyone that even remotely has a vendetta against him and try to put them away for his disappearance when really they had nothing to do with it all.”
The detective blinked then, eyes wandering away as he reflected on what his boss said. Yutaka was not only his co-worker. He was his friend. Best Friend. They did just about everything together and not just because work called for them to be around each other on a regular basis. They got along so well, they didn’t mind each others' company but now, in his time of need, Akira wasn’t able to help him. He could feel the tears welling in his eyes. He hated feeling useless.
The Captain slowly stepped back, tucking the folders under his left arm, sweeping a few blond strands from his face. “We go by the book, Suzuki Akira. We’re not screwing this up.”
“Where had I heard that before? Oh yeah, thats right. Before a certain someone went missing. How can I forget.” It wasn't the time for him to be immature, but damn it all if he hated hearing that phrase.
“Yamano and Kichida will be taking over these cases,” Kyo continued, deciding to just ignore Akira. “I’ll be back in a sec with your new case.” He then turned and walked out the door. If Akira could throw a temper tantrum at that moment, he definitely would and not feel ashamed. But as the last few sentences of that conversation played over in his mind, he started thinking.
“What if...” he mumbled, sitting down quickly while taking out his notepad, “What if they had something to do with it..” By they, he meant their current suspects. The ‘trannies in the boonies’, as he liked to call them. There was no evidence of course - well, nothing outside of him having been threatened. Maybe this is what that guy meant by “knowing what’s good for him”. It was possible. It made more sense than what the Captain was coming up with. Then again, why would he have been the one to be threatened and not Yutaka? Tapping his pen on the notepad, he thought back to everything that happened over the past few weeks. The murders, all the evidence and the suspects themselves.
All of the victims were chosen at random. They ranged from male to female, ages all across the board. There was no blood found at the scene of the crimes - something that Akira was more than happy to scratch off his list of ‘connecting evidence’. Semen had also been found on many of the victims, that unfortunately couldn't be traced. Same with hair that belonged to the suspects and fingerprints. Akira cursed under his breath at the thought of those key pieces of evidence, remembering why such a detail was kept from the media. Nothing could be extracted from them. The fingerprints were as if they belonged to no one. There was no record of them to be found anywhere. The DNA from the hair and semen was dead. Literally. He remembered Toshiya saying how weird it was to see such a thing with living, breathing people. Normally that kind of problem was only heard of in archeology. Often times when scientists found an old set of bones or a mummy, the DNA that they’d extract from it would be so old it was useless. Killed by time. Of course there were times that, when a cold case crime was solved, the DNA from the victim was indiscernible, but those odds were few and far between. There was nothing dead about these suspects. They were living, breathing, murderous people and if it took until Akira breathed his last breath, he swore he’d make sure to get all three locked away for life.
Closing his eyes, he pinched the skin between his eyes, rubbing it gently. He had been staring at his notepad for so long, his eyes began to feel strained. When he opened them again, he realized not a single word had been written down.
“Fuck!” he cursed, tossing his pen on his desk, laying his head down on the cool wood. It was overwhelming.
“Don't be so hard on yourself.” an out of place, calm voice said, "It's not like you knew this would happen. … Damn. My mistake. You did know. So I guess it is your fault." Akira froze in his seat, heart racing in his chest. He knew that voice; could never forget it.
Ruki stood in the doorway of Akira’s office, dressed in an over-sized white sweater, midnight blue jeans and a pair of casual black boots. His usual tight curls were slightly loose, framing his ashen face making him look even younger than before. He smirked at the young detective, swaying on the balls of his feet, inhuman eyes gazing around at the items in the small office. His plan was a simple one. No hard work needed on his end because he knew Akira would take the bait. His pride was too big to let something like this pass up. So when those angry, brown eyes met his playful blue pair, his smirk spread into a childlike smile.
Akira couldn’t believe his eyes. Either this guy was extremely dense or had King Kong sized balls. This was the second time the young brunette trespassed on Police property and both times he felt the need to taunt an armed officer without any fear of being arrested or injured. Even now, as he stood there staring back at the detective with that goofy look on his face, he seemed to be emitting this enormous amount of self confidence. As if it were perfectly normal for him to be standing there. Cocking a brow, Akira let his attention slide a tad to the left, noticing his co-workers were still continuing with their business.
Ruki noticed Akira becoming distracted, following the detectives gaze over his shoulder to the people working diligently in the background. “Isn't it strange how humans react once they found out they've lost something?” His demeanor was laid back, voice drifting in the air with an apologetic tone, "They scatter around like flies. Like they truly cared about whatever was lost, when really they barely even noticed them around from the start." Could it be said that Ruki felt bad for them? At one point in his life, maybe so, but that feeling had long since disappeared.
"What did you do with him?" Akira demanded, voice level rising as he stood from his seat, hand reaching for his gun. His theory was correct; there was no mistaking it now.
"Shut up." Ruki commanded as he faced the detective once more, devilish grin returning when Akira noticed his mouth had betrayed him and did as it was ordered to do. "You don't want your buddies to think you've gone nuts now, do you?" Chuckling lowly, Ruki leaned against the side of the door. He found it hilarious to see the ‘big shot’ officer vulnerable; on his own turf nonetheless. It was even better than the first time, though back then he had stolen a taste of Akira’s essence. Even now, he remembered how good it was. He licked his lips, wanting to have a sample right then, but their current location was a less than desirable place for that kind of...intimacy. Gazing down to his watch, keeping track of time, he looked back towards Akira, who was clearly beginning to have a hard time. “Go ahead and keep at it,” stretching his hands above his head, giving a fake yawn, “You can continue on this route and be locked away for insanity, losing the only chance you’ll ever have at seeing your friend again.”
Naturally this would be the moment for Akira to ask what the other was talking about, what had he done to him, etcetera. Unfortunately, that option was not available for him. He then reached towards his mouth, sticking his index and middle fingers between the crease to pull the flesh apart. Though his skin felt no different, his lips stayed pressed together, like they had been glued shut and no amount of pressure could peel them apart. Frustrated, Akira grabbed his gun and pointed it towards the intruder, grumbling all sorts of threats and curses.
“Oh god Akira, put the gun away. You’re just gonna end up putting someone’s eye out.” the vampire scolded, frowning and wagging his finger at the cop like a disciplining mother. As expected, Akira didn’t listen.
Taking a step or two closer, placing his arms behind his back and clasping his hands together, Ruki snorted before bursting into a fit of laughter. The look on the blond’s face was priceless. His eyes were having a battle of emotions. Whether to keep staring at him with burning fury or look off in bewilderment to assess what was going on. His cheek muscles were spazzing, turning an embarrassed pink shade. Ruki was sure that if he were to touch the other’s face, he would be able to feel the heat radiating off of it. Leaning forward, he took a few more cautious steps closer, humming a soft song that he’d heard Aoi sing to Uruha on countless occasions. Akira’s gun stayed pointed directly at him, following his every move until he finally came to a stop in front of his desk.
“You’re stubborn as a fucking bull, you know that?” Ruki said, placing his palms on the light colored wooden desk, letting himself slide forward until his forehead was stopped by the barrel of the gun, “Every time we meet you want to shove this damn gun in my face. To be honest, I feel quite offended. I have done nothing....... to you.. lately.. that deserves that.” Giggling at the cop’s change of facial features, Ruki moved his head, letting the barrel slide against his cheek. The chill of the metal felt good against his skin, eyes fluttering to a close.
Akira stared wide eyed at the other male, wondering what the hell he was on. Heroin? Meth? Acid??, the list growing longer as a guttural moan began to seep from the brunette’s slightly parted lips. How the hell anyone could get turned on with a gun in their face was touching an area of kink that Akira didn’t even want to imagine. Tired of the antics, Akira lifted his hand, swinging back hard, letting the heel of the gun connect with the left side of Ruki’s head. He may have went too far, but at least he didn't shoot him. That would have been worse.
Ruki knew it was coming. He could hear the idea loud and clear inside Akira’s head and instead of dodging it, he allowed it. On impact, his head jerked violently to the right, making him stagger some. The side of his head stung, as he felt blood start to ooze from an open wound caused by the gun. Ruki didn’t move an inch, only letting - now glowing- blue eyes to settle on his prey.
Akira’s adrenaline had spiked. He saw the wound and the blood and figured the male wouldn't put up much of a fight now that he saw he meant business. He then tried to speak again to let him know that he was under arrest. To tell him the laundry list of charges that were to be brought against him and both of his friends. To ask him, yet again, what he had done to his friend and where to find him. But his mouth still didn’t budge. Feeling at wits end, Akira quickly pushed the barrel of his gun against the cut on Ruki’s head. He pressed down hard, seeing a bubble of blood squeeze from the cut. He screamed behind stone lips the useless dribble he always said to criminals once he had them cuffed. The suspect’s piercing blue eyes were staring back into his own. If this were a Sci-Fi movie, Akira was sure that there would be two holes in the back of his head right now, caused by the lasers that would have sprung from the other’s eyes. But he endured the cold, hard stare, looking back into the icy blue abyss, matching the same intensity.
“Violence is never the answer..” Ruki drawled, the side of his lips tugging into a sneer, “Didn’t your mother ever teach you that?” He heard the muffled comeback and laughed, letting his tongue slide between his lips and lick the blood that had made it to his mouth. He let his sights drift to the phone setting on the desk, spotting the time. He figured it was about time to take this interaction to another location. As he began to straighten himself up, he felt Akira’s resistance to move. He needed to get a little strict.
“Akira,” he began, letting his vampire strength force said man to move with him as he straightened himself to a stand, the wound healing as he did so. He noticed the detective’s confusion. Reading the “How’s” and “Why’s” floating around in his head. It wasn’t a shocker to see the gun moved back to the middle of his forehead or the completely ‘freaked out’ facial expression dawning Akira’s features. With a soft smile, he continued, “Look, I am willing to make a deal with you. But I'm seriously going to need you to put the gun down,” leaning forward, filling his face with fake worry and concern as his eyes moved about sporadically, whispering “People are staring.” Pulling away, Ruki crossed his arms over his chest, releasing the mental hold he had on Akira’s mouth.
By this point Akira had gotten so used to blurting back whatever he wanted to say, that when he heard his own voice actually speaking the words, ‘Quit fucking around!’, he was startled. He wanted to know how the other had did it. How was he able to keep his mouth from moving that whole time? How did the gash heal? Was he some sort of magician? He knew in his heart of hearts that there was no such thing as magic, but he had no other explanation for any of it.
Unfortunately, his brain decided to take matters into its own hands and shifted his eyes to see what the tiny man had meant. Probably wasn't the best decision of his life. Not only was his Captain standing there, new case folder in hand along with someone he had only seen in passing - his temporary partner he assumed, but the two detectives he had spoken to not long ago were standing there as well, mouth agape and unbelieving tomato sized eyes. Panic ran through Akira’s body as he looked back towards his grinning suspect. ‘As much as this guy laughs, he should be a clown instead of giving people hell,’ but he couldn't linger on that thought for too long.
“Is everything ok, Suzuki?” Captian Nishimura questioned, cautiously holding his hands up in the air as if to say he wasn't a threat. The other officers followed suit, mumbling indiscernible words under their breaths, eyes glued on Akira. Akira was speechless, looking back to Ruki, then his gun and returning his confused stare to his co-workers.
“Of course everything is fine!” he said, trying to smile a bit, but feeling it falter some. His suspect was still grinning like a kid about to tell a deep dark secret. He wanted to smack the look right off his face, but he couldn't. Not while the Captain was looking anyways. Just as he opened his mouth to speak, Nishimura cut in, hands still raised, moving slowly into the office.
“Put the gun down, Akira.” the Captain warned.
“What do you mean put the gun down?” he argued, keeping a watchful eye on the perp while taking glances to his boss, “Do you want him to get away?”
“Suzuki, man, listen to the Cap, “ the nerdy detective suggested, wary smile threatening his lips. The tubby one only hummed an agreement, nodding along looking like a deer caught in headlights.
“Are you guys serious? So not only do you NOT want me on this case, but you also want me to allow a suspect, whom I should also say admitted to being a part of Yutaka’s disappearance, get away? Am I hearing this shit right or are my ears fucking failing me?” Akira couldn't believe what was going on. It made no sense what so ever. Why would the Captain ask him to do such a thing? He had their suspect standing right there in the room. He was even ready to turn himself over and now they’re asking him to let the guy go? Turning his burning stare back to Ruki, Akira hissed pressing the gun harder into his skull, “Did you fuck with my ears too, asshole? Huh?”
“I think you need to go home.” Nishimura calmly said.
“What the hell is wrong with you?” Akira argued. Nishimura only shook his head. Ruki giggled softly.
“Clearly Yutaka’s disappearance has started to get to you, Suzuki. I understand. He’s your friend, you want him back. But this is not the way. You need to go home and rest.” the smaller blond kept his eyes locked with Akira’s, nodding slowly as he gently moved his hands down to his sides, “Better yet, take a couple weeks off. Early vacation. You’ll get paid like usual and you can rest up. Let us take care of the cases.”
“But-.. but....” Akira stammered, eying everyone in the room now. His world was falling apart and nothing he did or said could fix it. It was madness. Pure madness. An irritated sigh then left the fugitive. It took everything in his power not to pull the trigger then and there.
“Akira... Akira... Akiraa~” tilting his head back, groaning. This was becoming boring. “Look,” pointing towards the Police Captain, he gave an inviting wave, “He can’t see me. Neither can they,” pointing behind him to the men at the door. Sensing the detective was about to speak again, Ruki held up his hand, wanting him to stay quiet without having to make him. Akira finally obeyed, “I’m not magical, if that's the stupid question you were going to ask. I can't grant you any fairy wishes and I most certainly can’t make shit appear out of thin air. But I can allow you and whomever else, to see what I want you to see.”
He knew the other figured his speech was all bull shit, but it didn’t matter to him. He wanted to know, so he told him, “I'm not going into the science of it all because frankly, I have no damn clue myself. Point is, I have something you want and if you want it, I suggest you come and get it.” Smirking as he turned, headed towards the door, Ruki could feel Akira’s stare at the back of his head. The real fun was about to begin.
Moving past the two cops at the door, he turned around, one finger in the air, “Ah yes, that deal. Well, since you didn’t lower the gun when I asked you, you miss out on that deal. So here’s another one. The game is called Tag, I'm sure you’ve heard of it.” Akira only stared at him as Kyo moved near to take his gun, “If you can catch me, I’ll let you put as many bullets into me as you so please. Deal?” Ruki didn’t want to stand there and wait on a reply, so instead he left, moving through the crowd of bustling cops and crammed desk as fast as possible and exited the front doors.
When Kyo laid his hand on the gun, Akira immediately jerked his hand away, sliding it into its holster on his hip and made a dash for the door. ’ He was right there, RIGHT THERE! And they let him go!’ He ignored the call of his Captain and co-workers, asking where he was going and that he needed to clock out. If it were that important for him to do so, they could do it for him. For now, he needed to catch the guy they let walk right past them.
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After searching each floor of Headquarters, Akira took his search outside the building. His temper flared as he looked from right to left, searching for where Ruki may have went. To his luck, the suspect was nowhere in sight. Scoffing, the blond made a dash for the parking lot, thinking he may find the male there, leaning against his car like he had the first time they met. It was a stretch, but at this point, Akira figured he didn't have much to lose. His boss practically put him on "medical" leave; omitting the word 'medical' in an obvious attempt to not make his mental state any worse than what it already was. He knew he wasn't crazy and the sooner he could catch the curly haired bastard that was playing him for a fool, the sooner he could prove his sanity. Turning into the parking area, Akira caught a glimpse of white blur, speed past his peripheral. He stopped in his tracks, rubbing his eyes thinking for a moment that the Captain may have been right. Maybe he was going crazy and needed the time off. As he moved his hands and gave the parking area a once over, he spotted his target, exactly where he knew he would be.
"There was something I forgot," Ruki said, giving a lopsided smile as he leaned against the detective's car, "I had to level the playing field some." He then gave the bumper of the sports car a hard swat, chuckling at the sound of his flesh smacking the metal, "This chase is just you against me. No one else needs to be involved."
Akira didn’t understand that the shorter meant, but he shook away the thought of asking him, figuring it was pointless; he was cornered. Reaching for his gun, his jaw dropped when his hand only grabbed air. Looking down, he found only an empty space where his gun once sat. Snatching his eyes back to the suspect, Akira hissed, seeing his gun being twirled around the suspects finger.
"Maybe you didn't understand me, Akira," Ruki smiled wider, whistling a tune, stuffing his free hand in his pocket and strolling around the back of the car, "I have no weapons. I have no radio. Just my feet and my hands." It wasn't a lie. Ruki didn't need any weapons; his whole body was a weapon. He then pulled out a small silver and black device. Scheming eyes glancing back to their prey, "I also don't have a phone. Which means you lose it too."
"How the fuck…" Akira began, patting down his pants. There was no way the other male could have his phone. Being able to get his gun was one thing. He could have easily dropped it while he was running, even though he hadn't heard a thing clatter against the pavement, that didn't mean much of anything. He was focused on something more important than just his gun, so it was easy to believe that Ruki had his gun. But his phone? How the hell was he able to get the phone? He hadn't even pocketed it yet. It was still safely secured in his hand, well, from what he knew. Scratching the back of his head, he assumed that he may have accidentally dropped it like he did the gun. It then began to sink in. Maybe the Captain was right. Maybe he did need a vacation. With all the work load and stress, and now dealing with Yutaka’s disappearance, it was starting to fuck with his head.
Ruki tipped his head, sneering as he watched Akira stare off in disbelief. He could barely remember a time where he was feeling the very same emotions the other had. Back when a vampire toyed with his -then human, mind. During that era, humans were avid believers in Gods and Goddesses. Some civilizations even believed these beings would leave their heavenly homes to walk among them, testing the believers faith. Should the deity feel displeased with their followers, the villagers would offer up a human sacrifice to prove their loyalty and how much they appreciate what that God/Goddess did for them. Ruki came from such a tribe. Every so often flickers of that lost time period would make itself known to him. To a normal person, such a thing would steer them away from causing grief on other mortals, but Ruki was different. What happened to him then, only fueled him into becoming the creature he is now.
“Let’s get this show on the road,” Ruki boasted, dropping the phone on the ground and crushing it into pieces with only a slight press of his foot. He removed the clip from the gun, sliding it into his pocket while placing the gun on the trunk of the car, “Since Im going to be on foot, I’ll allow you the use of your car.” Akira arched a brown in complete confusion.
“That doesn't make sense,” he said. “How can you say you’re leveling the playing field, yet I get to use my car? And you take my bullets, but said I could shoot if I caught you?”
“Oh, it makes perfect sense. You’ll get the bullets when you catch me. Wouldn't want some of those babies to ‘accidentally’ get fired off to slow me down,” Ruki chuckled, taking backward steps away from the car, “I’m much faster than you think I am. If you were to chase after me on foot, you’d never catch up and I’d hate to think what would happen if you never found your friend,” rolling his eyes and tapping his chin, as if he were actually trying to think of a scenario, “I mean, I can only hold the little one back for so long. Just a few weeks ago, I had to tell him, ‘Hey, leave him alone.’ But did he listen to me? No. He finds a different way to talk to the guy. Uruha’s a crafty bastard, but I’ve been able to keep him contained.” Gasping, he quickly covered his mouth, watching as the detective’s face twisted in deeper confusion.
Ruki could hear the question in Akira’s mind, causing him to double over in laughter. “You mean to tell me he didn’t tell you? Your FRIEND, Partner, left you out of the biggest news of his life?” He laughed more, watching as the blond made a swift dash in his direction. The Vampire easily dodged him, moving so fast he would appear as only a smudge to human eyes, in hysterics when he heard the other crash into the bumper of the neighboring vehicle. “Looks like you two will have to have a heart to heart when you find him. IF you find him.” And with that, Ruki sped off.
Akira barely blinked before noticing the other had disappeared. He gazed around the lot, hoping to spot him. It wasnt long before he noticed a patch of white against a sea of dark winter coats, a block down the road. ’ If he wants to play, we’ll play.’ he thought to himself as he grabbed the empty gun from the car, shoving it in his holster before opening the door and getting inside. As he stuck the key in the ignition, he was struck with the reality of what Ruki had been saying.
“Leveling the playing field,” he bitterly repeated, eying the smashed radio and torn wires that belonged to his alarm. Naturally, questions of how the other was able to even touch his car without tripping the sensors fluttered in his mind, but he pushed the thoughts back; there were more important things to deal with. Putting the car in reverse, Akira peeled out of parking space and headed off in the direction he had seen Ruki.
A/N: Ooo.. lol I really dont have much to say here. Ruki's fun isnt he? And you kinda see how he came to be what he is now. The fun begins in the next and (hopefully) final part of this chapter.
CHAPTER 10 A