Part 12

Sendoh slumped down on his armchair as he twirled his finger around the black wings in front of him. "The situation's getting weirder and weirder each minute." He narrowed his eyes thoughtfully as he recounted and reviewed everything that had happened and will be happening so far. "Okay, Satan knows about Kae-chan's little love life with Hanamichi. Mitsui's fallen for a mortal himself, only his mortal turns out to be an angel. Satan and Death show Hanamichi their conversation through his dream, which results to Hanamichi bursting out his anger and frustration on poor Kaede. Kaede is heart broken, and his aura has completely disappeared, thus, making him vulnerable.

"Mitsui, on the other hand, hasn't made any moves towards Kiminobu since the realization scenario. Satan shifts the date of Kaede's marriage for tomorrow, and the death of Hanamichi the next day. The weird thing is, why would he make Kaede get married tomorrow when Death would come for Hanamichi the next day? Does he think that Kaede will give up fighting for him because he is married and he is a demon who really doesn't care anymore about the redhead, or does Satan think that Kaede will still fight for Hanamichi, and for a safety measure, tells Death not to kill his only son?" He shook his head, deep in thought as he continued twirling his finger around the black wing.

Koshino sighed in reply. "I wouldn't know what Satan would be thinking, but for the record," He snatched the part of his wing which was being used by Sendoh as a twirly plaything away from the blue eyed demon. "Would you stop using my wing as a distraction of some sort?!"

"Gomen, gomen." Sendoh offered with a smile. Then, he rubbed his chin as if he was a detective of some sort. "But think about it, Hiro. It's almost like Satan's taking drastic measures to make sure that Kaede follows his path."

"Well, its not like Kaede's ever fallen for a mortal before."

"True, but Satan never bothered with his son before." Sendoh shook his head and stood up. "Why the heck would he change the day of Kaede's marriage AND still anticipate the battle with Death?"

Koshino shrugged. "You do know that Satan has the power to see the future. That part of his power may be small, but it is very reliable for him. Maybe he saw that Kaede would try to do something, and he made a back up plan for that course of action. And as for Hanamichi's case, he can't exactly KILL the mortal who has conjured Kaede up until..." His eyes widened in understanding. "The 2 weeks have passed or the demon that has been called gets married."

Sendoh considered that explanation. "Right. That may be the reason." He looked towards his lover in question. "Do you think we should tell Kaede about this?"

"I already know."

Both Koshino and Sendoh jumped at the sound of that voice and they turned around quickly, their eyes trained on the black figure that moved away from the shadow of the room towards the light Sendoh's flame created. Koshino shivered involuntarily. Rukawa was not exactly smiling, but he had a thoughtful look on his face as he came forward, his body still moving as graceful as usual. The only difference was...the eyes looked dead. There was no light in it, no spark, nothing. Koshino wondered if Hanamichi's accusation really blew the young prince away.

Sendoh covered up his surprise by clearing his throat and giving one of his best smiles at his cousin. "Kaede! How are you?"

Kaede gave a small smile, but that smile didn't reach his eyes. "I'm fine."

Sendoh nodded and voiced out cautiously, "So...you've heard about the marriage and the fight with Death agenda? How?"

"Sylvester came to me and told me about it, so I came here to tell my father that I am okay with the change of plans for the wedding. As for the battle with Death, I overheard it from your conversation."

Sendoh blinked at that answer. "And you're not angry? Worried? Curious? Anything?"

"What reason would I have to be? I am an akuma, after all. Akuma's have no feelings."

Koshino swallowed nervously as Rukawa said that. Rukawa seemed to say it with a smile on his lips, but his eyes hardened sharply and his aura seemed to flow out of his body. Koshino drew back until he was behind Sendoh, not trusting himself to be vulnerable at a time like this.

Sendoh noticed Koshino's action and reached out to hold his lovers arm comfortingly as he continued his conversation with his cousin. "I see...Well then, have you told Hanamichi about this yet?"

Rukawa seemed to stiffen at the sound of that name, but he brushed it away as if it was just some kind of bug. "I will tell him about the situation when he gets home tonight. I will also inform Hisashi about it, so that both minds will be at ease if ever they wonder where I will be tomorrow." With that, Rukawa nodded respectfully at both Koshino and Sendoh, and turned to leave, creating a warp hole in front of him.

"What about the battle with Death, Kaede?"

Rukawa paused in his stride at that question, then, he shrugged. "I don't know." Then, he was gone, leaving Sendoh speechless for once in his entire life.

Koshino sighed worriedly when Rukawa finally disappeared. "What's going to happen now, Akira?"

Sendoh shook his head and hugged Koshino to him. "I don't know."

Koshino buried his face in Sendoh's shirt. "That was the answer I was afraid of."

* * * * * *

Hanamichi walked down the road towards his house while whistling his "I'm a Tensai" tune. He turned at a corner and walked straight ahead, his mind still set on the date he made with Haruko the next day. He smiled to himself. He would bring her to that carnival that has just opened around the corner. The people who already went there said that it was one of the most beautiful places they have ever seen. Hanamichi smiled as he imagined Haruko's face. Haruko-chan... All of a sudden, the face of Haruko changed into Rukawa's, sending Hanamichi to stop right in the middle of his tracks. He blinked, and immediately, the image disappeared.

He stared off into space for a while. "What the..." He was shocked, not that Rukawa's face overlapped Haruko's but the expression Rukawa had. It was...strange. Hanamichi has always seen the kitsune either grinning, smiling, or simply amused, but the expression he had now was...sadness.

Hanamichi blinked again. That was a weird image. He has never seen the kitsune make that sort of look, and yet, he has seen it. It was a bothering thought.

"Oi, Hanamichi."

Hanamichi snapped out of his thoughts and turned around to see Mitsui walking towards him, his bag over his shoulder. Hanamichi offered a small smile. "Hi, Mitsui."

Mitsui smiled back at the redhead, then, he noticed the second bag in Hanamichi's other hand. He raised an eyebrow. "Hey, why do you have two bags. And have you seen Kaede anywhere?"

Hanamichi jumped at the name, but he forced himself to get over it. He gave a strained smile. "I-Iie. He didn't come back to class after lunch. The nurse came to sensei and told him that Rukawa was feeling ill, so...when he didn't come back at all, I took his bag with me..."

"Sou...ka." Mitsui nodded at that, and gave Hanamichi a soft smile. "So, shall we head back home."

Hanamichi turned around, his cheerful face back. "Hai."

The walk home was genuinely silent and comfortable. Hanamichi breathed in the clean air and looked up. The clouds were partly covering the moon, giving it a beautiful look. The only sound around them was the crunching of their shoes against the dead leaves that have fallen from the trees around them. Hanamichi walked on with his eyes concentrated on the sky, when he asked out of the blue, "How are you?"

"Hmmm?" Mitsui seemed surprise by that question. "What do you mean?"

Hanamichi shifted his attention from the moon to Mitsui's face. "I mean, how are you and Megane-kun?"

Mitsui seemed to pause in his stride when the word 'Megane-kun' came out of Hanamichi mouth. He forced himself to continue walking with Hanamichi, his eyes downcast. "Not too good." He replied honestly. "I thought I had it bad when I fell for him, thinking that he was a MORTAL, but when he turned out to be an ANGEL..." He sighed and bowed his head. "I don't know what to do anymore."

Hanamichi straightened himself up. "Don't you like him?"

Mitsui gave a small laugh. "Of course I like him. Hell, I think I may have fallen for him." He looked up at Hanamichi and smiled. "You know, one time, he accidentally bumped someone in the corridor, and that someone started bullying him. I was there with him, and before I knew it, I was beating the bastard down to the floor. I only came to my senses when Kogure touched my shoulder and whispered, 'Enough'. I think that was when I fell for him. His innocent and demure nature mixed with the evil and darkness of this world makes him draw people in. There were many other things that made me fall for him more and more, but the way he always seemed to care endlessly was the one that really made me love him for who he was..."

Hanamichi contemplated what Mitsui just said, then asked quietly, "And now? What do you think of him?"

Mitsui's eyes widened at that, but he bowed his head low so that his hair would cover his face. "I can't do anything. Whenever I see him, I want to smile and talk with him, pat him o the back, the things I usually did before I found out. But that's the difference." He looked up at Hanamichi and said in an anguished voice, "I now KNOW. I know he's an angel, and that makes the situation worse. Kaede may have fallen for you, but I have fallen for an angel, and that's-"

"Please," Hanamichi interrupted silently as he looked away. "Please don't say his name and that lie."

Mitsui sighed. "It isn't a lie, Hanamichi. He really loves you. You're the only person that Kaede has said that to. He isn't an emotional person, believe me. I've known him for DECADES, but when he says something that serious, he means it."

Hanamichi shook his head and smiled thoughtfully. "Forget it then. Okay, fine, he loves me," He looked at Mitsui in the eye. "But I don't. I love Haruko, remember? That was the very reason why I got that book and called Rukawa out. To get HER."

Mitsui looked down, a hopeless look on his face. "Do you really believe that?"

"What?"

"Do you really believe that you LOVE that girl?" Mitsui asked monotonously. Hanamichi opened his mouth to answer that question, but Mitsui interrupted him. "Before you answer, you have to think about it. Do you really love her? What do you know about her? What does she know about you? What do you like about her?" He looked up from the ground, and saw that they were already in front of Hanamichi's house. "I don't need to hear your answer now. You can tell me 3 days later, when you find out yourself."

Hanamichi was silent for a while, taken back by what Mitsui had just said. Do I love her? What do I like about her? He looked up at Mitsui, who had already opened the gate to his house. He sighed and stepped forward. I do love her...don't I?...

Mitsui was about to reach for the handle of the door when it suddenly turned by itself. They both watched as the door opened, and there, in front of them, stood Kaede, wearing normal human clothes, and had a smile plastered on his face. "Okaeri!" He greeted cheerfully.

Mitsui gaped then nodded back slowly. "Tadaima..."

Rukawa smiled at him, then turned his attention towards Hanamichi. He gave Hanamichi a warm smile. "Okaeri, Hanamichi."

Hanamichi managed to swallow the lump in his throat as he croaked out, "...Un..."

Rukawa smiled at him, then turned towards Mitsui again. "Hey, I've got news for you guys! And it's pretty good."

Mitsui got over his surprised expression and walked into the lounging room, followed by Rukawa. Hanamichi stood by the door for a while before following them. Mitsui sat down on one of the couches and gave his cousin a weird look. "You sure are looking excited. So, what's the news?"

Rukawa turned to look at Hanamichi. "Hanamichi-kun, please, have a seat."

Hanamichi blinked at the name Rukawa called him, and sat down on the chair, his eyes trained on the smiling kitsune. What's going on?

Rukawa nodded when he saw that everyone had taken their seat. He walked to the middle of the room and announced, "Well, my father seems to have changed the schedule of 2 things. One, is the day of my marriage, and two, is the battle with Death." He continued smiling, despite the tension that had suddenly radiated from the two other occupants. "Anyway, my father changed the marriage date to TOMORROW, so I won't be here the whole day. Then, I will come back to fight Death with Kogure, as I promised." When nobody spoke, Rukawa raised his arms up. "What? Don't you think it's good news?"

Mitsui stood up from the couch and regarded his cousin with shocked eyes. "Kaede..." He shook his head and licked his dry lips as he gasped out, "Why would you think that THIS would be good news?!"

Rukawa shrugged. "Isn't it obvious? That way, I'll be out of Hanamichi's life FOREVER." He turned to face the redhead and sneered. "Isn't this what you wanted, Hanamichi-kun?"

Hanamichi couldn't answer. He had gone a shade paler at Rukawa's announcement, and now, he could hardly breathe at the cold look those eyes gave him. He covered his mouth with his hands as one thought crossed his mind:

Rukawa...doshite...?

TBC