Oh, hi, Haruto
Oct. 30th, 2015 04:06 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
orange_lily"We've found Krampus," Soukichi says one evening, as Yugo returns from a day of grocery shopping.
Yuriko beckons him over and turns a laptop around. A man in his forties or fifties, brawny and besuited, is sat on the train with two very unlikely companions: A young man with a bright green mohawk, a dozen piercings, and tattoos all over his torso, barely covered by a fishnet vest; and a woman with fashionably short hair, in a white fur coat with an expensive handbag. The three are deep in conversation in the picture.
"We wouldn't have caught him, but we've had some of Soukichi's weird gadget animals trailing Mohawk Man for a while now. He's definitely a Phantom," Yuriko says. "He hasn't caused trouble yet, so we had bigger fish to worry about."
"Zombie," Phoenix says in his head, and Yugo flinches from the sudden heat at the back of his mind. "He's a coward. Joined Krampus' faction 'cause he thought he could make himself stronger by eating other Phantoms? But it hasn't worked out. The other one's Mara. She's part of Krampus' faction, but she never really worked that closely with him."
"Where's the train heading?"
"Tokyo," Soukichi says, tossing a ticket this way. "You're leaving in an hour."
"Dude. Dude. I wanted to talk to him anyway."
---
Yugo's barely half an hour off the train when he gets a call from Soukichi.
"Police are saying there's been a break in at the particle physics lab of Kirimine University. I'll give you directions on the way."
When he pulls up next to the university and climbs off his bike, it's clear that this isn't just a break-in. There are fire engines pulled up, flames billowing out of the window, and police officers scattering as a skinny, green monsters strides out, heavy package under one arm.
As soon as the monster sees Yugo, it darts away, fleeing across the grass. Yugo grumbles, giving chase, sprinting until the Phantom disappears into an alleyway. When he emerges the other side, it's to a crowd of people milling about, with the Phantom nowhere to be seen.
He tugs his phone out, calling Soukichi quickly. "Hey, it looks like one of Krampus' lot stole something from the university. I lost it in a crowd, but have your - gadget-y things keep an eye out for it, okay?"
"Got it," Soukichi grumbles. "You go find out what it was."
Yugo's about to head back into the alleyway when he feels somebody's gaze on him. When he turns, he catches sight of a reddish, metal thing the size of his hand, which flutters away before he can catch it.
---
Professor Fueki Sou, one of Kirimine University's particle physicists, doesn't seem too upset about his laboratory being wrecked and his university set on fire. Yugo supposes that's what tenure does to you.
"It was one of several early prototypes for a machine which converts common rocks and ores into resonant stones that can act as storage units for meta-energies," Fueki says. Yugo rubs his chin, giving him a blank smile. That seems to moderately annoy the man. "It makes magic rocks."
"That's - kind of an odd project," Yugo says. "You're not with any evil monster syndicates, are you?"
Fueki eyes him severely over his spectacles. "I rather resent the accusation, Mister Fujita. In truth, I was inspired to take up this work by some discoveries of a friend of mine, Wajima Shigeru. His work as a dealer of rare antiques had brought him into contact with these resonant - these magic rocks before. I'll give you his address."
"Aw, thanks, bro."
Fueki sighs deeply at that, but scribbles the address down.
---
The shop is called Omokagedo, and it's a lovely, quaint place, inhabited by an inveterate liar.
"Magic rocks? Phantoms? I like to mind my own business and not get involved in any of that monster stuff," Wajima says the moment Yugo asks about it.
"Dude. Professor Fueki said - ..."
"Sou likes to run his mouth, but half of what he says is pure fantasy. The man works in particle physics, I'm fairly sure most of that is just made up as they go along," Wajima says. "Now, if you don't have anything else to ask me?"
Yugo's about to respond when the shop's bell rings, and a familiar voice remarks that he's back. When Yugo turns, a young man a few years older and a few inches shorter than him is standing in the doorway, with a very small young woman next to him.
"Haruto, he's a - ..." the young woman starts, and Yugo remembers where he's heard that voice before. The other world. The car chase. He and Haruto never saw each other's faces, but they heard each other's voices.
Haruto's expression hardens immediately.
That girl's not human, Phoenix hisses. She's not alive.
"Dude, long time no see," Yugo chirps, bounding over to Haruto. "Oh, er. Maybe we should go outside?"
"Maybe we should," Haruto says dubiously.
---
"You're a Phantom," Haruto says as soon as they're out.
"No more than you are," Yugo says, raising his arm to show off the device grafted onto his wrist. "You're the White Wizard's boy, right?"
Haruto laughs a little at that, smiling and ducking his head. "And you're the Riders' kid. I recognise your voice. Is that what they call me over there?"
"Dude, you know what they're like. All a bunch of judgmental misanthropes," Yugo grins. "I wouldn't be in your territory, but three Phantoms from Shiragiku have come here."
"Mara, Zombie, and Krampus, right? I've been tracking them," Haruto says. "Or trying to. They're slippery."
Yugo makes an agreeing noise, rubbing the back of his neck.
"So," Haruto says. "Is this a team-up thing? We pool our resources and ..." he trails off, looking up. "Do you hear that?"
It takes Yugo a moment, but then he catches it. Flute music, soft and lilting, drifting over the wind. Haruto and the girl next to him seem unaffected, but the people passing by start to slow, then stop and sink to the ground, curling up on the concrete and drifting off.
Over to the right, Phoenix says sharply, and Yugo looks just in time to see a flash of white robes vanishing behind a building.
He's about to go after them when Haruto makes a pained noise, clutching his head. The pain hits Yugo a moment later, like a drumbeat behind his eyes, and he feels Phoenix's presence dragged forward, until it feels like his head is going to explode.
Then the pain stops, and something like sleep settles over him.
---
Phoenix opens his eyes. Across from him, he sees Dragon open his, Haruto's brown irises turned sharp white. He suppresses a grin.
"It's been a while, dude," he says, reaching forward and tapping Dragon's chin.
Dragon snorts. "Hardly."
Yuriko beckons him over and turns a laptop around. A man in his forties or fifties, brawny and besuited, is sat on the train with two very unlikely companions: A young man with a bright green mohawk, a dozen piercings, and tattoos all over his torso, barely covered by a fishnet vest; and a woman with fashionably short hair, in a white fur coat with an expensive handbag. The three are deep in conversation in the picture.
"We wouldn't have caught him, but we've had some of Soukichi's weird gadget animals trailing Mohawk Man for a while now. He's definitely a Phantom," Yuriko says. "He hasn't caused trouble yet, so we had bigger fish to worry about."
"Zombie," Phoenix says in his head, and Yugo flinches from the sudden heat at the back of his mind. "He's a coward. Joined Krampus' faction 'cause he thought he could make himself stronger by eating other Phantoms? But it hasn't worked out. The other one's Mara. She's part of Krampus' faction, but she never really worked that closely with him."
"Where's the train heading?"
"Tokyo," Soukichi says, tossing a ticket this way. "You're leaving in an hour."
"Dude. Dude. I wanted to talk to him anyway."
Yugo's barely half an hour off the train when he gets a call from Soukichi.
"Police are saying there's been a break in at the particle physics lab of Kirimine University. I'll give you directions on the way."
When he pulls up next to the university and climbs off his bike, it's clear that this isn't just a break-in. There are fire engines pulled up, flames billowing out of the window, and police officers scattering as a skinny, green monsters strides out, heavy package under one arm.
As soon as the monster sees Yugo, it darts away, fleeing across the grass. Yugo grumbles, giving chase, sprinting until the Phantom disappears into an alleyway. When he emerges the other side, it's to a crowd of people milling about, with the Phantom nowhere to be seen.
He tugs his phone out, calling Soukichi quickly. "Hey, it looks like one of Krampus' lot stole something from the university. I lost it in a crowd, but have your - gadget-y things keep an eye out for it, okay?"
"Got it," Soukichi grumbles. "You go find out what it was."
Yugo's about to head back into the alleyway when he feels somebody's gaze on him. When he turns, he catches sight of a reddish, metal thing the size of his hand, which flutters away before he can catch it.
Professor Fueki Sou, one of Kirimine University's particle physicists, doesn't seem too upset about his laboratory being wrecked and his university set on fire. Yugo supposes that's what tenure does to you.
"It was one of several early prototypes for a machine which converts common rocks and ores into resonant stones that can act as storage units for meta-energies," Fueki says. Yugo rubs his chin, giving him a blank smile. That seems to moderately annoy the man. "It makes magic rocks."
"That's - kind of an odd project," Yugo says. "You're not with any evil monster syndicates, are you?"
Fueki eyes him severely over his spectacles. "I rather resent the accusation, Mister Fujita. In truth, I was inspired to take up this work by some discoveries of a friend of mine, Wajima Shigeru. His work as a dealer of rare antiques had brought him into contact with these resonant - these magic rocks before. I'll give you his address."
"Aw, thanks, bro."
Fueki sighs deeply at that, but scribbles the address down.
The shop is called Omokagedo, and it's a lovely, quaint place, inhabited by an inveterate liar.
"Magic rocks? Phantoms? I like to mind my own business and not get involved in any of that monster stuff," Wajima says the moment Yugo asks about it.
"Dude. Professor Fueki said - ..."
"Sou likes to run his mouth, but half of what he says is pure fantasy. The man works in particle physics, I'm fairly sure most of that is just made up as they go along," Wajima says. "Now, if you don't have anything else to ask me?"
Yugo's about to respond when the shop's bell rings, and a familiar voice remarks that he's back. When Yugo turns, a young man a few years older and a few inches shorter than him is standing in the doorway, with a very small young woman next to him.
"Haruto, he's a - ..." the young woman starts, and Yugo remembers where he's heard that voice before. The other world. The car chase. He and Haruto never saw each other's faces, but they heard each other's voices.
Haruto's expression hardens immediately.
That girl's not human, Phoenix hisses. She's not alive.
"Dude, long time no see," Yugo chirps, bounding over to Haruto. "Oh, er. Maybe we should go outside?"
"Maybe we should," Haruto says dubiously.
"You're a Phantom," Haruto says as soon as they're out.
"No more than you are," Yugo says, raising his arm to show off the device grafted onto his wrist. "You're the White Wizard's boy, right?"
Haruto laughs a little at that, smiling and ducking his head. "And you're the Riders' kid. I recognise your voice. Is that what they call me over there?"
"Dude, you know what they're like. All a bunch of judgmental misanthropes," Yugo grins. "I wouldn't be in your territory, but three Phantoms from Shiragiku have come here."
"Mara, Zombie, and Krampus, right? I've been tracking them," Haruto says. "Or trying to. They're slippery."
Yugo makes an agreeing noise, rubbing the back of his neck.
"So," Haruto says. "Is this a team-up thing? We pool our resources and ..." he trails off, looking up. "Do you hear that?"
It takes Yugo a moment, but then he catches it. Flute music, soft and lilting, drifting over the wind. Haruto and the girl next to him seem unaffected, but the people passing by start to slow, then stop and sink to the ground, curling up on the concrete and drifting off.
Over to the right, Phoenix says sharply, and Yugo looks just in time to see a flash of white robes vanishing behind a building.
He's about to go after them when Haruto makes a pained noise, clutching his head. The pain hits Yugo a moment later, like a drumbeat behind his eyes, and he feels Phoenix's presence dragged forward, until it feels like his head is going to explode.
Then the pain stops, and something like sleep settles over him.
Phoenix opens his eyes. Across from him, he sees Dragon open his, Haruto's brown irises turned sharp white. He suppresses a grin.
"It's been a while, dude," he says, reaching forward and tapping Dragon's chin.
Dragon snorts. "Hardly."
