"What the heck?" Hikari slammed the cup of coffee down onto the counter and glared at her shirt.
"Ichika is dead. You'll be too, soon." Alina said shortly.
There was silence, then, "WHAT?!"
"She's alive," Korū yelled back. "Calm the fuck down."
A very annoyed eighteen-year-old guy appeared at the kitchen door. "What the hell? Who are you guys, anyway?"
"Your worst nightmare, just that we're real." Alina told him ominously.
"Stop that," Shōhei sighed. "We're-"
"Wait, are you the guy who dumped Ichika because you decided you were gay so you went off for a guy?" the guy cut in, glaring at Korū.
"That's the story she's spreading?" Korū snarled and Cayne's eyebrow quirked up. "Firstly, I didn't dump her. Secondly, she was the one who fucked up. Thirdly, if I was gay I wouldn't have dated her in the first damn place."
"She's an ass," Hikari chipped in helpfully.
"You don't just start accusing people of stuff the moment you see them anyway." Linda said, looking the guy over in mild disdain.
Cayne just glared at the guy, taking a sip of his coffee. His eyes were flickering between his usual blue and a bright amber.
Kaguya hissed at the newcomer, golden eyes narrowed, the most pissed off anyone had ever seen him.
"Hiraki-nii-?" Ichika mumbled sleepily as she stumbled into the kitchen. Her eyes widened when she saw Cayne's venomous blue-amber glare and Korū's furious one.
"Oh, she's actually alive." Alina commented, making herself a new cup of coffee.
The sight of Korū and Cayne standing next to each other with matching hateful expressions, was enough to make Ichika turn around and walk away with what little dignity she had left.
"Hey Ichika, want some coffee?" Alina called to her, "I know Hikari already gave you some yesterday."
Cayne sighed and gulped his coffee down.
Hiraki still stood in the doorway. "Get out of the way," Korū growled, finishing his coffee. "We're leaving." The wizard didn't move, and Korū moved to punch him in the face. "Bitch."
Cayne held a third cup of coffee to tide Korū over in one hand, while the other let go of Korū's arm, the one that nearly made contact with Hiraki's face a moment ago. He followed Korū out, sending Hiraki one last glare.
Minutes later, they ended up back in the sitting room that they had entered from. "Ready?" Shōhei asked.
"I'm going to fall, but sure." Cayne said.
"Mindlink for anything." Linda told them as everyone else entered the room.
"See you." Alina said.
"Mhm." Shōhei shifted to his dragon form, and Korū climbed on, offering a hand to Cayne.
"You're not going to fall," Korū promised.
"Sure, and I'm not gay." Cayne muttered sarcastically, also climbing on.
"No, you aren't, damn it," Korū grumbled back. "Just hang on." Just hang on to me.
Cayne sighed and waved goodbye to Hikari, Linda, Alina, Rihito and Shizuna. After Shōhei took off, he carefully wrapped his arms around Korū's waist and rested his chin on his shoulder. "Tell me if it feels uncomfortable." He mindlinked Korū, feeling the wind whip around him as they flew.
"Fuck feeling uncomfortable, just don't fall off." He relaxed into Cayne. "Though Shōhei isn't gonna let us fall all the way if we do." He glanced down at the dragon. "I hope."
"I hope so too."Cayne muttered.
Korū sighed. "I won't let you fall, okay?"
Back at the Fujihana manor, Shizuna led Linda, Alina and Hikari to the front door. "This leads back to the Ishikawas. Good luck. We may perhaps meet again."
"Yeah, don't die." Rihito said.
Hikari grinned. "Bye. And you could be less formal, Shizuna-san." And she stepped out the door.
"Bye," Alina said while Linda gave a little wave. No one saw as Alina sneaked their hosts a second glance, thoughts still flying through her head.
Hikari blinked and glanced around as she stepped through the door, and saw the somewhat familiar walls of the Ishikawa's living room.
"Oh, cool, we didn't have to fall," she commented to herself, relieved.
"Oh, you're alive. Did you get cursed?" Greta asked, walking out of a room just in time to see Alina and Linda appear.
"Nope. Tsukiyama's dead, though."
Greta blinked. "How?"
"Akui murdered him." Alina stayed.
"Why?"
"He's a disgusting double-crosser. Or he would have been." Linda answered.
"Nice, you're alive." Chihaya commented, emerging from another room. "I thought I heard the whispers of chaos. Where's Kaguya?"
"With Korū," Hikari said breezily. "Who's on his way back to Bloodmoon."
"Ah." Chihaya said. "So Tsukiyama is dead?"
Alina nodded.
Katsurou also wandered into the living room. "Oh, you guys lived. Or did three of you die?"
"We're all alive," Hikari responded. "And not cursed any more than we already are, so that's amazing."
"But do you know how to make yourselves less cursed yet?" Greta inquired eagerly.
"Yes." Linda told her. "It's complicated, though."
"Cool. I'm going to go get some coffee." Katsurou announced distractedly, running his fingers through his hair.
"We're all addicted to coffee," she observed. "Nice."
"Why so distracted?" Chihaya asked Katsurou curiously. "Thought you hated coffee?"
"I don't hate coffee. It just makes me high." Katsurou protested as he made his way to the kitchen. "There's something I've been trying to figure out."
"Why everyone has a coffee machine?" Alina supplied.
"Ye- what? No." Katsurou said.
"What's that you're trying to figure out?" Hikari asked as they all trailed after Katsurou.
"I may or may not have bugged Rihito about what you guys found there." He confessed, albeit a little sheepishly.
Alina nodded. "I know."
"What?" Linda asked. Katsurou was also staring at her, seemingly shocked.
"I could scent you on Rihito, and at the main door." Alina explained. "Go on with your explanation."
"If Akui's life mission is to kill all of the Okazaki, why are you all still alive? It was so easy for him to kill Tsukiyama, surely he could have easily assassinated all of you any time he wanted."
Alina grinned. "I like you. You're pretty sharp."
"If he drags it out, he'd get more pleasure out of it?" Hikari mused. "He isn't sane, after all."
"More time for you to die another way. He's pretty smart, after all." Linda pointed out.
Chihaya was frowning at the ground. "I need some coffee too." He decided out loud, and walked past Katsurou and into the kitchen.
"Let's all go." Greta said.
"Hey, wait, I just realised, my uncle never told us what he was doing with the Gammas," Hikari said suddenly, the thought striking her.
Alina froze mid-step, before turning to face Hikari, wide eyed, "Oh yeah!" She exclaimed. "How did all of us forget to ask?"
"Who knows. I'll mindlink him now." She paused for a second.
"Hikari? Did something happen?"
Everyone was staring intensely at Hikari who was now standing still, seemingly staring into space, until Greta turned to Chihaya, "Where's mom and dad?" She whispered.
"Out."
"Ah," and they all continued to stare at Hikari to wait for news.
Alina get a little impatient and went up to Hikari's mental door and knocked, in hopes that she could hear the conversation first hand.
Hikari shoved it open. "Don't stare at me. Pressure ain't good for my deadass soul."
Alina smirked and turned a hundred and eighty degrees in real life, having all the spectators' attention turn to her. Linda raised her eyebrows at her, appearing by Alina's side and waltzing in through Hikari's open door.
"What happened?" Kaito asked again. "Make it quick, I have things to do." He had been burying himself in work after you-know-what happened.
"Why were you with Bethany and Duke?" Alina asked.
"Like I said before, some things are better said face to face," was his only response.
"Well, tell Korū, Shōhei and Cayne, then. Or meet us at the airport." Linda said.
"I'm busy, Bloodlust wolf. I can't just go somewhere to tell you a story." He sounded slightly irritated.
"Yeah, that's why you can't tell Korū and the others. It might be important." Alina growled out. "We're trying to piece together a puzzle here, and we don't even know how many pieces there are!"
"Then I'll tell them when they get here."
Hikari gave him a mental hug. "Are you okay?"
"No. Yes." He sighed. "I'll be fine."
"Let's mindlink Korū and Cayne." Linda said to Alina and Hikari through the mindlink. Alina nodded.
"Mh." Hikari made a sound that sounded like an agreement when Kaito closed his mental door again.
The three of them made their way to Korū's mental door, only to find it ajar.
"Why is it...?" Hikari murmured, walking up to it and reaching out to push it open.
Alina snickered quietly at the sight of mental Korū and Cayne lounging on a sofa, talking.
Korū turned to face them with an annoyed growl. "What the fuck do you want?"
"Remember to ask Kaito why Bethany and Duke were with your mum and uncles. Or vice versa." Linda told him.
"Mh. Get out."
"Yeah, have fun. No funny things on Shōhei's back. I don't think he would appreciate it." Alina said before disappearing, literally, back into her own mind.
"What the fuck-"
"We'll just get going now." Linda said. She had hours upon hours worth of driving to do.
"Hurry the fuck up." Korū twitched impatiently.
Hikari grinned. "Okay, okay, we're leaving."
Cayne just lay there finding the scene funny. "Don't get lost."
"Oi, don't laugh," Korū grumbled, flicking his forehead.
"Hey, it's pretty funny." Cayne told him. "Anyway, how long more do we just sit on Shōhei's back?"
"There's like, more than seven hours to go."
"Wow. Okay." Cayne said as the invaders retreated out of their minds.
Back at the Ishikawa manor, Linda unfroze and said, "Let's get that cup of coffee before we leave."
"So, what did you find out?" Greta asked them.
"Nothing, except Kaito can be mean when he's stressed." Alina said.
"Can't blame him, though," Hikari sighed.
Alina hummed in agreement, tugging at her hair. It was slowly growing longer.
"Welcome back," Mrs Ishikawa told them as she and her husband came into the kitchen. Mr Ishikawa smiled kindly, "Was your visit at least mildly pleasurable?"
"Ichika was there, so that was a huge minus," Hikari said. "But apart from that and Akui appearing, yeah."
"What?" Mr Ishikawa asked, "I'm not surprised you don't like Ichika, but how did Akui even get in?"
"Tsukiyama. How, exactly, we aren't sure ourselves, since Akui murdered him before we could break the ikrar he made." Linda said, Alina beside her making coffee. No one noticed as Alina's paused on a button for a moment too long.
Mrs Ishikawa sighed. Mr Ishikawa asked again, "Not surprised, but what happened to his body?"
Linda glanced at Hikari, "You tell them."
"Uh, probably at the bottom of Fuji," Hikari said with a cringe.
The eyes of all the members of the Ishikawa family widened, "Wow."
"Yeah..." Hikari dragged out, in an attempt to fill the silence.
Chihaya cleared his throat, "Uh, so what's your plan for now?"
"We need to go back to Night Stalker." Alina said after swallowing her mouthful of coffee, "They may have something or someone for us."
"I see. You'd better get going, then," Mrs Ishikawa said.
"Uh, Greta, do you want to come with us? We can bring you to Bloodlust." Linda asked. Suddenly, everybody's focus was on the girl.
"If I were you I'd say no," Hikari mumbled, but no one heard her.
"I-" She sent a weary glance to her family, who all smiled at her encouragingly. Her haze dropped to her feet before meeting Linda's. "Okay. What do I need to pack?"