Chapter Text
“IZAYA!”
There was a loud crash from behind the raven as he flew down the halls of the school once more. Just like every other day whenever he took that fateful little stroll past the classroom next door. Whenever he passed by that one classroom’s door, something about his presence would seep through the tiny cracks in it and reach the ultimate guard dog hiding within. Izaya could never escape detection when he walked by that room. That was the monster’s den, after all. It was only natural that something would happen when a monster smelled its prey.
Izaya risked a glance over his shoulder to look back at the aforementioned monster.
Yep, there he was, as beastly as ever. Looming height like a redwood tree converted into a lanky human for a day, bright dyed-blonde hair sticking out like a beacon on his head, angry scowl that dusted his normally frustrated features into absolute rage, and rough hands riddled with the signs of scuffles and fights clutched around his chosen projectile: in this case, the teacher’s new desk.
Shizuo was a beast to be feared.
And that was precisely why Izaya never feared him.
“IZAYA!” The angry roar came again and Izaya nimbly skipped to one side of the hallway, letting the desk fly past him into the wall just ahead of him, smashing itself a good foot into the poor wall.
“Shizu-chan, you really ought to work out a schedule for how often you go around committing property damage.” Izaya purred, turning around and flashing the beast the grin that he knew would get his monster blood pumping even faster. “It’s just downright inconsiderate to the poor city maintenance men who keep coming in here to fix everything, you know?”
“Downright inconsiderate? I’m doing the school a service right now!” Shizuo snarled, his honey-gold eyes flashing as he punched an arm blindly into a wall at his side and ripped out a chunk of plaster, hurling it towards the smaller boy who’d invoked his rage.
Izaya laughed and twirled out of the way, putting a finger thoughtfully to his lips as though Shizuo hadn’t just tried to commit murder-by-self-made-rubble. “Are you now? I suppose that’s true. I hear the school district will be giving Raijin a discount on reconstruction and repairs! Because of all the loyalty points they’ve been racking up with the construction companies!”
His red eyes twinkled as a vein popped in Shizuo’s forehead, the blond boy growling and just full-on charging at Izaya instead of trying to throw something else. Izaya swiftly spun around and bolted down the hallway, high laugh ringing out with a crystallic quality down the halls as he fled his pursuer. These chases that they had every day…yes, they were a deep mark on his behavioral record and not overly helpful for his uniform budget, but to Izaya they were worth it. They were an escape from the everyday dullness of the academic rigor surrounding him. He could watch his humans all day, no problem with that, but once those teachers put work assignments on his desk with those imploring eyes saying “this time, I want you to do it in class”, he was done.
The work was too easy. There was no challenge for his mind involved at all in the infantile worksheets the school provided. He enjoyed the reactions his classmates had to the work – all different kinds, as usual – but that was the biggest gain from being in class at all. He could watch the interesting expressions that crossed their faces, and examine the methods they took with each scenario they were presented with, and even offer the slightest bits of change to the situation just to see what would happen. A slip of paper with a few answers scrawled on it during a test, for example. Who would keep it to themselves and who would pass it to their friend? Would anyone tell the teacher? Would anyone just throw it away? The reactions were endless and bountiful and never ceased to cause delight in the young boy, but soon enough a teacher would come along and ask him to please finish his work.
Just like that, with the presence of the teacher, many of the reactions were dulled down into more subdued natures, like mice moving quieter in the pantry once they heard the human shuffling about in the kitchen. The actions and intents were still there, but they were quieter and harder for the cat to notice. That was what Izaya was. He was a cat, observing the mice that were humans, and there would be the occasional distraction to scare his beloved toys into a watered down version of what they were. Ah…and then there was the dog that would chase him away.
“Izaya, I’m telling you to stop so I can kill ya!” The roar echoed down the hall, and a smash followed soon after the shout, alerting Izaya to the fact that Shizuo was now back to his earlier tactic of throwing then chasing.
Izaya grinned and kept running, yelling some kind of taunt back at the beast that he didn’t really hear as his inner dialogue kept running. Yes, the chases were an escape from the cage of academics. They were also an extension of the cat’s study of mice. He could see their scared faces as he ran by, and log their reactions to danger and overwhelming violence. If a monster ran down the halls of your school, what would you do? Not many people could set up a good study for that scenario. Thankfully, Izaya had a lovely attack dog that worked just fine. If Shizuo couldn’t scare these students, then nothing could. Ooh, that guy just looked bored when he saw Shizuo coming. Maybe Izaya should look into him later. He could have some kind of psychosis that removes fear from the brain! Or he could live in the slums and be used to violence in many different forms! Or he could be stoned. The ragged pupils might attest to that. Hm. Izaya hoped that last one wasn’t true.
The raven took a sharp left around the corner of the hallway and ran out of the building he was in, bursting into the sweet sunshine of just-before-lunch, ignoring the startled looks of the teachers who were milling about in the school gardens, already taking their breaks before the class even technically ended. He darted past them all and ran deep into the garden, losing himself in the small maze of bushes and flowers that the school had started growing about a year ago to cover up the permanently embedded flagpole that used to stick out of the ground right there (a memento of one of Izaya and Shizuo’s earliest fights). He was able to wind past a row of rose bushes and duck down into a little space right between two of the thorny hedges, squeezing back into it until he hit the stump of a tree behind him. He reached a hand forward and carefully shifted the branches of the hedges around in front of him, expertly hiding himself within the rose bushes, and waited.
Sure enough, the monster burst into the garden full force, growling gutturally and snarling as he spun around to look for “the flea”. Izaya smirked in his little hiding place as the growls of the beast grew even angrier and his walking turned into vicious stomps around the garden. The scents of the various flowers around here, Izaya had learned, did quite well to cover up his scent whenever Shizuo pursued him into here. The roses seemed to work especially well. When Izaya hid inside of them, he’d have to either purposefully jump out or sneeze at something for Shizuo to find him. He was as good as invisible tucked inside the dark, thorny depths of floral vegetation.
All it took was a little bit of patience as the beast plodded around the garden, frustrated that he’d lost the scent. He really was like a dog, chasing a cat that had vanished in front of him. Soon the dog catchers would be here to stop him.
“Heiwajima-san!” A voice yelled in the air. Izaya heard Shizuo’s footsteps freeze and was able to see the very top of his blond head dip guiltily down as a second person strode into the garden. “Causing trouble and skipping class again!” The voice scolded. Izaya recognized it as the voice of the principal himself. He’d forgotten that the principal’s office was in full view of the garden.
“I’m sorry, sir.” Shizuo muttered.
“Sorry won’t cut it this time, Heiwajima-san. Come with me.” The principal snapped. Izaya heard the two sets of footsteps fade away into the distance and an evil smile slipped onto his face.
The dog was in the kennel. He he.
***
“Heiwajima-san, I don’t know what to tell you.” The principal sighed as he folded his fingers and looked at the guilty boy from across his desk. “This is the seventh time you’ve been in here this month. And it’s only the 13th! Your behavior is concerning to say the least.”
Shizuo ducked his head even further, feeling the guilt claw around inside of him like an animal. It wasn’t like he enjoyed destroying school property, or skipping the classes he was already failing, or coming to the principal’s office every other day. He just…whenever he saw that damn flea, he just lost it. He couldn’t control his rage. And he screwed up just like always.
“You are aware that your grades are below the marks required by the school system to pass you, correct?” The principal asked, dragging Shizuo’s attention back up to him. Shizuo flinched at this statement of fact. Yeah, he was aware. He’d had the conversation with his parents already. The thing was, Shizuo didn’t know how to bring his grades up. He tried his hardest in class. He studied at home. He called Kadota or Shinra for help on homework. He even asked the teacher for help, which was something everyone knew only the nerds ever really did. But he was still failing tests. He was still turning in 50% correct homework assignments. He was still struggling with each new concept that came his way. Nothing he did helped. He was so frustrated with himself all the time. And then there was the flea on top of things…It all felt so pointless.
“I’m aware.” Shizuo mumbled aloud. “And I try. I do.”
“I know you do, Heiwajima-san.” The principal sighed, leaning back in his chair and studying Shizuo carefully. “Your teacher Yamamoto-sensei came and talked to me the other day. He says you try harder than almost any of the other kids in class, that you come see him nearly twice as often, and that you turn in everything when you’re supposed to. He doesn’t know what else he can do, and frankly, neither do I.”
Shizuo felt his heart sink in his chest. So that was it. Even the school system was giving up on him now. There was no point in teaching someone that was unteachable, after all. He was just too stupid to learn. He’d end up as some kind of drop-out, more likely than not. Doing who knew what for the rest of his life. He tried. He just couldn’t do it.
Shizuo let his misery overtake him as he rose to his feet, ready to walk out of the office once the principal gave the word. He didn’t even look the older man in the eye. He couldn’t. Not when he felt so much like a failure.
The principal seemed surprised by his actions. “Why are you standing up? I’m not done yet. Please sit down.”
Shizuo glanced up in shock, wondering what the principal could be waiting for. When the older man gestured for him to sit down again, he did so, wondering what could be going on.
The principal watched Shizuo for a bit, tapping his finger on the desk. “I decided on a tutor.” He finally said. “A student tutor, to be precise. One who understands the material being taught in class from your point of view and who can empathize with your situation as a student. Someone closer to your age who might be able to help you get on the right track.”
Shizuo’s gold eyes snapped wide open. “A tutor?” He blurted out, standing up again. “You can find one for me? Really?” Excitement coursed through his veins at the thought. He had a chance! He had one last chance to get this right!
The principal seemed encouraged by his enthusiasm. A smile crossed the older man’s face and he nodded. “Yes. A student tutor will be assigned to you to help you with your assignments and classwork for the rest of the year. You’ll only get one for the entire year, because I can’t ask a bunch of students to take all their time and teach you. He or she will meet with you at your home and help you with whatever you need it on.”
Shizuo paused at that. “My home? Why there? Why not here?” He asked slowly, thinking of the awkwardness in bringing home some stranger every day to help him study in front of his family.
“Because the school can’t stay open for long periods of time like that, Heiwajima-san, and I think you’d need quite a bit of time to both get to know your tutor and get help from him or her on all your things.” The principal explained.
Shizuo shifted back and forth on his feet, unsure of the idea now that it involved taking the problem home to his family. What would they think of him? A student who was such a failure that he needed a personal tutor from the school to help him with everything?
The principal saw this hesitation and a stern look crossed his face. “Heiwajima-san, this is your last chance.” He said flatly, dragging Shizuo’s attention back to him. Dark eyes stared into gold ones, neither one moving. “You won’t get another one. Unless you take this tutor, you aren’t passing into the next grade level.” The final statement came, shaking Shizuo to his core. So this was it. This was his only option. But…he still had an option.
His family would understand. He knew they would.
“Yes sir.” Shizuo said aloud, bowing deeply to the principal. “I understand. I’ll take the tutor. If you can find one. Thank you so much for not giving up on me.”
The principal felt a smile skip over his lips at the blunt honesty of this student. It was refreshing to see in a kid his age. Honesty and effort. Good qualities combined with a bad mind. He hoped he could find a way to help.
“Don’t mention it. The tutor will be sent to your house tomorrow evening at 6:30. Please leave your address for me here so I can give it to them when I pick one.”
He slid a piece of paper and a pen across his desk. Shizuo hastily picked up the pen and scrawled down his address, hoping it was legible enough to read, bowing once more to the principal before walking out of the office.
“And clean up your behavior!” The principal called after him just as the office door shut.
He watched Shizuo exit the building, heading back to his class most likely, and smiled at the thought of helping him out. He was a good student, Heiwajima Shizuo. Just with a bad mind for learning.
Now he needed to find a tutor for the boy. A different student who had a good mind for learning, and hopefully one for teaching. Hm…
A thought suddenly crossed the principal’s mind. He had a good mind for learning, alright. But he was a very bad student. Even if he understood all the classwork better than his teacher probably did. Still…
The principal glanced out the window towards the garden. From there, he could see a figure sitting next to the rose bushes, having emerged from his hiding place now that the danger was gone. It was a rather small figure, all things considered, curled up and reading a book to itself contentedly in the quiet of the garden. No doubt, it would head back to class soon, if only to watch the other students who were there. That was all he seemed to go to class for: people-watching.
He liked people. He knew how their minds worked. He was smart. He seemed like he would have a lot of free time. And maybe, just maybe, some of Shizuo’s enthusiasm and effort would rub off on him. In the same light, perhaps some methods of learning would rub off onto Shizuo. He might be killing two birds with one stone here.
The principal bit his lip, and looked at the address scrawled onto the paper on his desk. He had promised a tutor by tomorrow evening. He hoped it wasn’t a mistake.
The principal leaned forward and grabbed his phone from off his desk, calling one of the classrooms. He waited for a bit before a feminine voice picked up. “Higurashi-san? Yes, it’s the principal. I’m calling about one of your students. Orihara-kun? Could you send him up to my office when he gets back to class? Thank you. Yes. It’s very important.”