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Akito wakes up with his head absolutely pounding, in a place he doesn’t recognize.
“Arata, I swear to god, please tell me you got cursed again.”
There’s no response. Akito heads over to the door and knocks, and a woman in white opens it.
“Good, you’re awake. Follow me.” She turns and heads down the corridor, and for lack of anything better to do, Akito follows her.
He comes to a pretty fancy looking lounge and awkwardly takes a seat when a blond guy comes in, along with…
“Hey, I know you,” Akito says. “You tried to kill me!” It’s that monster hunter who nearly staked Akito in Kichijoji.
“I’ll have to apologize for Takeshi,” the blond boy says. “There was a misunderstanding. Believe me, our order’s entire reason for existing is to protect humans from monsters, we don’t harm them.”
Akito keeps his face neutral. “I’m not feeling super protected when you hit me over the head and dragged me here,” Akito says.
“A precaution you see, we can’t have that vampire who’s always hanging off of you know about our base.”
“What do you want?” Akito asks.
“We’d like you to join us,” the blond boy says. “Allow me to give a proper introduction. I’m Osamu Kubo, this is my brother Takeshi. We’re members of the Order Of The Heavenly Chord, and as I said, it is our duty to defend humans from the darkness that plagues our lives.”
Akito has to physically restrain himself from rolling his eyes. “I’ve been attacked by you guys more than I have monsters.”
“And yet your Leanan Sidhe friend kidnapped you.”
“He was cursed, and even then he didn’t actually do anything to me. I felt safer there than I do here.”
Kubo sighs. “Ah, that’s how they work. Luring you in with a false sense of security. But at the end of the day, they won’t hesitate to devour you.”
“None of them eat people,” Akito says.
Takeshi rolls his eyes. “Told you this was worthless.”
Kubo glares at him. “Ah well, then I suppose we must return you to your room until you reconsider, Shinonome-san.”
“I can guarantee you that locking me in a room will not make me more likely to join your stupid anti-monster cult.”
“All will be clear in time, however it’s not good for a human to spend so much time around… monsters like that, so we have to keep an eye on you.”
Suddenly, two guards appear behind Akito and start dragging him away. “You’re all freaks!” Akito shouts.
He’s left back in the room and sits on the bed.
Guess he has to figure out an escape plan.
-
Toya has many reasons to dislike being forced to a formal dinner with his parents, and especially when it’s a vampire get together.
Older vampires all treat him like a baby just because he’s actually 16 instead of being over a hundred. They can’t even all agree on a time to get together and catch up on the last century, so they have to do this every six months with people Toya only vaguely remembers hearing about.
“You’ve gotta at least try to fake being interested, Little Maestro,” Kamui-oniichan says.
“No one wants to talk to me anyway,” Toya says. He wishes so much he’d been able to sneak out and hang with Akito and the others, but nope.
“It’s not much longer until you can disappear into your room,” Hatsuaki-oniichan says.
“It can't come fast enough.”
“You can turn into a bat and chill in my pocket!” Kamui-oniichan says. “You won’t have to do anything and everyone will just think it’s cute.”
“Part of the thing I hate is everyone thinking I’m a baby,” Toya points out.
“You are a baby,” Kamui-oniichan says. “You’ve got your whole life ahead of you to try out new things! Meet new people…”
“And yet you’ve been breaking up and getting back together with Shosuke Otori for the last hundred years,” Toya says.
“Ouch, Little Maestro, come on. Don’t bring him up when he can’t even be here.”
“It’s good he can’t, we don’t need you two causing a scene,” Hatsuaki-oniichan says.
“Ohhh my gosh is that Hatsuaki???” A vampire with green eyes that Toya doesn't recognize practically throws herself around Hatsuaki-oniichan’s neck.
“Ciel,” Hatsuaki-oniichan says with barely contained annoyance, “hello.”
“We haven’t seen each other since the 70s! Come on, I wanna catch up! I heard I missed you when the Berlin Wall went down.”
“If I had to guess, he was avoiding you,” Kamui-oniichan mutters into his drink.
Toya raises an eyebrow and Kamui-oniichan mouths “clingy ex” before disappearing into the rest of the party.
“Seeing anyone lately?” Ciel asks.
“Given your interest in gossip, I’m sure you know the answer to that.”
Ciel rolls her eyes. “You know humans don’t count.”
Toya frowns. “Why not?”
“Because they don’t get what it’s like to exist as long as we do, and they’re just so… childish, you know?” Ciel says. “Well obviously you don’t, but your big brother can tell you! Besides, they change so fast, you can’t get invested in them. It’s like you blink and they’re dead.”
Hatsuaki-oniichan’s face doesn’t move.
“Like, if she’s not even gonna come back as a ghost, why even bother counting that Hina chick?” Ciel says.
“Hikari,” Toya corrects her.
“Whatever, when you’re older you’ll learn it’s not worth it to remember their names.”
Toya’s about to say something, when Hatsuaki-oniichan puts a hand on his shoulder.
“Just let it go,” he whispers, and Toya grimaces but heads back to a quiet corner.
Suddenly, he feels someone else tap him on the shoulder.
“What?!” Toya snaps, turning around.
“Hey, save it,” Arata says. “We gotta go, Akito’s been kidnapped by monster hunters.”
Toya raises an eyebrow. “Are you cursed again?”
Arata waves his hand and creates a bunch of purple sparks. “No, I’m serious this time, I went looking for him because we were about to meet for parfaits and he didn’t show up. Asked around and it turned out the last time anyone saw him, some guys in white were hauling him off.”
Toya growls.
“Yeah. So we need to go right now.”
“I need a distraction so my parents won’t notice,” Toya says. Suddenly he spots Hatsuaki-oniichan, who’s still clearly annoyed by Ciel.
Toya runs over to him and tugs on his shoulder. “I need to go right now,” he whispers.
“It’s only a few–”
“Please Onii-chan, Akito’s in trouble,” Toya begs. “If it was Hika-nee…”
Hatsuaki thinks about it but groans. “Fine. But you owe me, because Kamui’s not going to let me hear the end of this.”
Hatsuaki straightens and turns back to Ciel, then dumps his drink on her.
“Ciel-san, I’d have to politely request that you stop insulting the love of my life before I'm forced to take more drastic measures.”
Suddenly there’s a commotion as Ciel starts yelling and Toya uses that to slip away.
~
Akito’s on his bed pretending to sleep when he hears someone whispering.
“Hey, you ready to get rescued?”
Akito turns and sees a tiny Arata staring at him. “What the hell?”
“Tell anyone I can go pixie-sized, and you’re dead,” Arata says. “I usually only do it in front of Souma.”
Akito can’t help smirking. “Ok, what’s your plan?”
“When I give the signal the rest of the RAD WEEKEND crew start raising some absolute hell, and you rush out.”
“The guards are gonna switch in about ten minutes,” Akito says. “Wait until then. Do you know how to get to the exit without going down the corridor to the left outside my room?”
“Yeah, why?”
“If we go that way we almost certainly run into guys who are high up, if not in charge,” Akito explains.
“Glad you’ve been using your kidnapping time effectively.”
“Well I have to be prepared in case someone gets hit with another curse and needs to yell at me for three hours.”
Arata rolls his eyes.
Suddenly, there’s a voice outside.
“Give me a few minutes with him, yeah?”
Then there’s a knock on the door, and Arata quickly hides.
“Uh, come in?” Akito says.
That Takeshi guy opens the door.
“Knocking before entering my cell is pretty polite,” Akito says.
Takeshi rolls his eyes. “This isn’t a cell idiot.”
“I can’t leave.”
“You shouldn’t want to leave.”
“So do you need something?” Akito asks.
“Yeah,” Takeshi says. “Uh, that girl who was with you that day, with the blue dyed hair.”
“An?”
“Yeah, her. I was wondering…” Takesi shifts. “What’s her type?”
Akito blinks. “Not you.”
“What? Why not?!”
“Well, for one, she’s taken,” Akito says.
“What, so I have to put down the puppy if I want to date her? No big deal.” Takeshi says. “I just need to know she’s not like a lesbian.”
“No, she’s bi,” Akito says, “but she’s a siren, and you’re a monster hunter.”
“Sirens aren't a big deal, they’re not vampires or demons or something, I can work with sirens.”
Akito frowns. “The more I learn about you people, the less sense you make.”
“Of course you don’t, you have no clue how much we do to keep humanity safe,” Takeshi says. “In fact you put humans in danger by fraternizing with them!”
“Were you not just asking me how to ask out a siren?”
“Sirens are some of the better ones!”
“Well I can tell you with that attitude, An’s not gonna give you the time of day.”
“Speak for yourself.”
“I’m genuinely not even sure what you see in her?”
“She’s hot!” Takeshi says.
“Oh, am I?” Takeshi turns around, and suddenly An is standing behind him. “I’m touched you feel that way,” she giggles.
Takeshi puffs out his chest a bit, and Akito rolls his eyes.
“Yeah, see I like guys who are massive fucking idiots!” An blows dust into Takeshi’s face and he passes out. Then An turns into Arata.
“That was embarrassing,” he says, “now help me get this guy on the bed, it’ll cover us when the next guard comes in.”
They drop Takeshi into the bed and sprint out before the guards can come back.
“Ok, have we figured out where the exit is?” Akito asks.
“Toya’s supposed to meet us once he’s—” Arata’s cut off by the sound of blaring alarms. “—caused the distraction.”
There’s the sound of footsteps, and Akito pulls them into a nearby closet as the footsteps pass.
“Ok,” Arata says, “keep going until you run into Toya once I’ve gotten their attention.” Then he transforms into Akito.
Before Akito can call him stupid for willingly trying to distract a hideout full of monster hunters by himself, Arata sprints out, and from the sounds of shouting, they go after him.
“If anything happens to you, idiot, I’m gonna figure out how to kill you,” Akito mutters. Once the noise trails off, Akito opens the closet door and runs away from the noise.
His sneakers squeak on the polished floors, and it’s not long until he crashes into Toya. Or rather, Toya crashes into him.
“Hey partner,” Akito says.
“Are you ok?” Toya asks frantically. “Did they hurt you or anything?”
“My ego’s a little bruised over getting kidnapped again, but otherwise I’m fine.”
Toya sighs in relief. “Good, let’s go.” He grabs Akito’s hand and leads him towards the exit.
They’re almost at the door when a crossbow bolt flies over their heads.
Toya hisses and puts himself between Akito and their attacker, a blonde woman who… seems kinda familiar, but he doesn’t know why.
“You know Tou-chan, you gave yourself away.” She says. “You’d only go after the real Akito-kun.”
“Tou-chan?” Akito asks. “Toya, do you…”
“...It’s not possible,” Toya gasps, “Hika-nee?”
“Wait, your brother’s girlfriend? Isn’t she dead?”
“We don't have time for explanations,” Hikari says, pulling a note out of her pocket. “Give this to your brother and knock me out.”
“What?! I can’t do that, why don’t you--”
“If you want to leave here with Akito-kun, you’re going to have to knock me out,” Hikari insists.
“But—“
“They’re over here! By the exit!” Hikari screams suddenly, and some more guards appear. Toya growls, grabs the note, and then tackles Hikari to the ground before throwing her at the oncoming guards, knocking them over like a bunch of bowling pins.
Akito holds the door open and they rush outside.
~
Everyone meets up at Weekend Garage none the worse for wear, though Kohane’s got some bruises that An’s patching up.
“You shoulda seen her! She barreled right through those guys! They musta had every guard in the building trying to take her down, but they couldn’t because my Kohane’s so cool!” An says.
“A-an-chan…” Kohane says. “Tono-san distracted a bunch too, a-and Kotaro-kun also helped scout for us a-and.”
“Nah, you were pretty tough,” Arata says.
Toya’s not commenting on anything, just staring at Hika-nee’s letter.
“So, what are you gonna do?” Akito asks quietly. They hadn’t told the others about seeing her there.
“I don’t know,” Toya says. “I can’t give this to Onii-chan, it’ll break his heart.”
“She did help us, that’s gotta be a sign something’s up,” Akito points out.
“Yeah, but what?”
Akito takes a sip and thinks for a moment, then gets everyone’s attention. “So seriously, any of you know about these Heavenly Chord guys?”
Arata shakes his head. “Nope, seem weirdly, you know, big for a recent thing though.”
“A-and if they went after Akito, they might be why there’s been that increase in attacks on monsters!” Kohane points out.
“But why kidnap Akito?” Kotaro says. “Don’t get me wrong, he’s great, but it’s not like they’re kidnapping every human in Tokyo to recruit them.”
Ken nods. “The adults will look into these guys. and we’ll tell you if we find anything. Until then, you guys should stay far far away from them.”
Akito gives Toya a look. They’ll be looking into it on their own then. Not just for Akito’s sake, but for Hika-nee’s too.
~
Hikari’s having a lot of really mixed feelings right now. On the one hand, she’s proud of Toya for making it look convincing. On the other hand, her shoulder is killing her.
At least Osamu-kun doesn’t suspect anything as he paces his office.
“What do we do now!” he grumbles.
“What we were doing,” Hikari says. “I go back to keeping an eye on Shinonome from afar.”
Osamu-kun scoffs. “You want your old job back, after you already failed?!”
“If he had been in actual danger from the Leanan Sidhe I would have stepped in.” Hikari says. “You’re the one who’s blown our cover. They’re going to be wary of any attempts to retrieve Shinonome now, they know who we are, and we still have to prepare. I told you for exactly this reason it would be better to leave Shinonome alone until we were ready, you’re the one who didn’t listen.”
Osamu-kun’s eyes burn, he hates not being the smartest person in the room.
Little fucking prick.
Finally he relents. “I expect you to practice your usual distance,” he says. “The slightest indication you might be compromised by Aoyagi—”
“He dislocated my shoulder, I think it’s clear he didn’t recognize me.”
“Still! We’re so close! Everything rests on Shinonome, do you understand that?!”
“Of course,” Hikari says. “And hey, there is one bright side to this.”
“What?”
Hikari smiles. “The Aoyagis will be even more determined to protect their downfall.”