Chapter Text
Cheers of a booming crowd echoed through the once vacant, dreary, alley. Music blared out of the speakers, vibrating the area around them. The DJ stood boldly at his modest looking booth, changing the music with ease; conducting the dance floor as he pleases. Bodies were packed tightly next to each other. Sweat rubbed against them and the sweltering heat that radiated off of them was almost suffocating, but no one cared. Multi-colored neon lights flashed quickly then disappeared, only to be replaced by another. Moving their bodies rhythmically, dancers swept across the dance floor. Their moves catching the eyes of so many other, but they weren't the stars of this show.
On the other side of the alley stood a teenager that looked slightly out of place. He had a mask painted on his face. Hair slicked back, wearing a loose plain grey tank and baggy camo pants, he glanced wearily at the crowd. This wasn't his first time in this sort of setting. He had been at places like this for years now, but there had been a pretty large gap since the last time. He pulled out his smartphone and punched in a number. The other person picked up only after two rings.
"I thought you said that you were going to be here?" He hissed into the phone, just as the person picked up.
He heard a chuckle from the other side. "Chill Toru, I'll be there in a few," the person on the other side assured, nonchalantly, "I just got help up by that woman again, I bringing the rest of the crew so just wait a minute."
Toru rolled his eyes. "Fine then but I expect the best from all of you guys," he replied, his lips tugging up slightly up into a smirk.
The man on the other side snorted. "Do you really think we would be any less? I'm hurt Toru. Well if you're going to say that. Can't wait to see your performance steal the show once more."
"Yeah, yeah sure. Now hurry up it's about to start," He grunted. Toru heard a small click indicating that the person on the other side had hung up. He slowly withdrew his phone and gazed up to the sky. The stars shined brightly like a million lanterns floating up in the dead of night, lighting it up. The moon was not yet full, but was still the highlight of the night, illuminating everything it touched.
"Minimal exposure" was a motto Toru lived by. Don't stand out. The world was hash and cold to those who were different, and he accepted that. It had never really bothered him anymore after he embraced the truth. Even if he did try to fight it, he knew there wouldn't be anyone else to back him up. In the world only 99% of the world were born with Irises, so if he ever meet one, there was almost no chance of them making that change. It was human nature to detest the unnatural, the new. Then why did one meddling kid have to press him until he saw a new side, even if it was only for a few hour.
"That was amazing! Ah. I know it's rude to stare, but really where did you learn how to do that!"
How long had it been since he first met the guy. Maybe four, five years ago. It's funny how time flies. To be honest it only felt like it was yesterday when this boy came into his life. Toru could still remember the words that came out of the kid's mouth that made him freeze up. It made Toru rethink everything he had known up to that point. Would his life really be better if he just stayed in the shadows with no one, but himself, by his side? Well, he wouldn't be alone of course. He still would've had Hijiri by him, but not being able to show what he was capable of, was he really content with that?
"Hey Mizushima Toru, that's you right? I've seen your sister around here. She does ballet right?" The boy pestered. He looked about same age as Toru did. "Anyways I have a proposal for you. Would you like to join me in making a street dancing team?"
The teenager quickly turned around as he felt a tap on his back. He hadn't heard any footsteps coming up from behind him. His sharp black eyes meeting a familiar face. Shiny, jet black hair was tied into a tight bun. Like Toru, he was wearing a matching grey tank with camo pants, but he was also sporting an extra bomber jacket. Soft, friendly face in contrast to his own static, dull expression, but the teen's eyes told a whole other story. The eyes were intense, piercing right through Toru with an unusual taunting expression. It was unusual for anyone else, but this was a normal greeting for the two of them.
"Told you we'd make it," The teen bragged, grinning as he lazily placed his arm around his shoulder. "I thought you would have more faith in us, Phantom."
Toru scoffed at the alias given to him when he had first joined the group. "Ten minutes later then our time we agreed upon," he retorted immediately removing the arm from his shoulder, "what did you do this time to piss her off?"
The teen gasped, mock hurt, "Oh woe to me, forgive oh king how could I ever pay for my misdeeds," He exclaimed dramatically, a mischievous glint in his eyes. He of course was met with a fist on his temple, "Ow Toru, what the heck was that for!"
"Stop messing around King," Toru sassed, "honestly the theatrics are getting old."
"Theatrics, Old! Excuse me, this is art to be able to act this well, with a face like this," 'King' quickly shot back.
A cough interrupted the two. They turned around to see the rest of the gang standing behind them impatiently. "Will you two stop flirting, we have go we're about to on, so hurry up," One of them exclaimed. Toru quickly shot a withering glare at him.
"Alright, come on Phantom we best hurry up. We don't want to keep our opponents waiting," King said, gesturing to the party on the other side of the alley.
Toru looked back at the crowd. It was a place where who you are in the world doesn't matter anymore. All the labels, all the cruelty of the world all seemed to dissipate once he was there. Iris Zero or not, that had no effect on the dance floor.
"So, what?" The boy asked. Chills ran up Toru's spine, "What does being an Iris Zero have to do with dancing? Does having an iris make you dance better?"
Toru nodded. "Okay come on you guys let's get going," He commanded. Carrying himself confidently, he lead the crew, King by his side. The partiers separated, making a path for the dancers striding to the middle of the crowd. Their destination, the dance floor. There was already a group waiting there. It seemed as if there they were anticipating their arrival.
He could hear the DJ announcing as they stepped onto the floor, "Look who finally decided to show up! The Heroes of the Floor!" The name was King's choice. It had been a small inside joke between the two of them that no one seemed to have gotten, but it really didn't matter to the rest of the team. They thought it suited them.
The dance floor was now a battle field of wit and skill. Instead of guns, bombs, and knives they had flips, breakdancing, and taunts. The pressure increasing though they haven't even started yet. They could see on the other side their foes for the night. Their opponents are an intimidating bunch. Renowned for their creativity while under tough situation.
The crowd now had their full attention to the dancers. Placing their bets on who would win, the bids getting higher and higher into an outrageous number, two hundred, four hundred, six hundred just to see who would make it into the regionals. Even if it was only for two high school teams they both attracted countless people.
"Ladies and Gentleman!" The DJ shouted, filled with bubbling excitement, "You've followed us for this long and now the time is finally here. The team who wins this advances to the Regionals." He jumped out of his booth and ran to the middle of the dance floor. "On your left we have the Hip Hop Rebels!" He continued, "And on your right we have the group that emerged from the ashes, The Heroes of the Floor! Now everyone let's begin." Cheer erupted from the audience. The DJ grinned at the teams the quickly ran back to his booth and put in a new CD on the turntable.
Music blasted out through the speakers, getting the battle started. With a quick blink of an eye, the Rebels took the initiative to to steal the first attack. With how in sync choreography was, their performance was exploding with energy. Their leader stepped closer making the Heroes back up. One of them huffed in annoyance making the first move to counter. Two others quickly joined. The way the three danced, you could've sworn that they had no bones in their bodies.
The Rebels were quick to respond to the counter with their own flips and tricks, catching the eyes of many. King let out a hearty laugh and grinned, but it quickly turned into a condescending smirk. Eyes analyzing every movement done, Toru had seen that face a million time already. King strided forward his movements stiff and robotic only to drop down and do two flips. Toru joined along with the rest of the team perfectly coordinated.
King moved closer to the leader until their noses almost touched, the smirk never leaving his face. They could all see the the leader's discomfort. King did a backflip away from the leader and confidently moved his hand into a 'bring it on' gesture.
"Oh, looks like the King made this personal!" The DJ cried.
The opposing team took a blow backing away from the humiliation. Their leader scowled running back up. Determination filled in every step. They could see it in his eyes. The Rebels weren't planning on giving up anytime soon. Faltering in every move, the Heroes were at a disadvantage. Toru's eyes narrowed examining the dancers. He couldn't seem to find an opening to get in. Pressure and tension weighed him down. Time was running out.
He felt a warm hand on his shoulder relieving him of the stress built up. "Go show them what you're made of Phantom," King ordered, pushing him up slightly.
There it was, the opening. It was his time now, he could feel the blood pumping in is veins. The world around him seemed to have stopped. He could hear the beating of his heart thumping rhythmically with the music. He had done this a million times, but the excitement that came with it was always the same. In front of him were people who didn't care about who he was at school, not at the moment at least. Iris zero or not there was none of that there.
"Minimal exposure! That's a load of BS if you're asking me," the boy shouted, "Tell me this Mizushima-san wouldn't you, even if it was for just a moment, be able to prove your worth. Be able to do something without have people ridiculing you for being an Zero! What's the point in being able to dance like that when no one else is watching."
Without any warning, Toru jumped into the middle of the floor, dazzling the audience as he moved quickly across the floor. Adrenaline rushed through his veins. The heat of the spotlight on him seemed hotter than ever, sweat drenched the dancers, and the thrill of the moment lifted the overwhelming pressure. Then he quickly drop to the ground, breakdancing, his crew behind him with their own choreography. It was that feeling of freedom of dancing that drew him to it. With all eyes on him, the name Phantom seemed a little ironic. Breakdancing was always a part of the show for every team, but Toru made it seem like it was something new. With his own creatively crafted dance moves and in unison with the rest, the crowd was blown away.
"Look at that people!" The DJ yelled, "you have just witnessed the amazing performance of the Phantom!"
The music was abruptly cut off, the battle had ended. Toru, exhausted moved back to the his team. King slap his back, and he let out a little yelp. There was still a tense atmosphere that loomed over the alley. The battle may have been over, but the winner still hadn't been decided yet. Toru's eyes went back and forth from the rebels to the judges. The judges were talking inaudibly with the other team itching to hear the who would advance into the regionals. King narrowed his eyes as the DJ came back up to the dance floor, a clipboard in hand. That piece of paper on the clipboard would decide everything. The stakes was rising every second the DJ pulled the microphone closer to his mouth.
They had worked so hard to lose now, please, just please.
"AND THE WINNER IS..." The DJ paused for effect then grinned, "THE HEROES OF THE FLOOR!"
The crowd went insane.
Cheer and cries filled the night sky as the Heroes screamed in joy. The King pulled the team into a bone crushing group hug. Tears filled a few of their eyes. They had won. Toru glanced over at the other side, the rebels filled with anguish at the fact their performance wasn't good enough. He knew exactly how they felt. King withdrew the hug and walked towards the other team. The leader of the team glare sharply at him, but he just replied with a good-natured smile.
"Good game," He remarked as he stretched out his hand, "You guys almost had us beat, if you keep improving I bet next time we'll see you in regionals."
The leader scoffed and slapped his hand away. "Next time we'll beat you," He hissed while walking away the others joining him.
"Rude," He huffed while walking back to his team. Everyone turned to look at him with grins on their faces. "Well, It looks like we're going to Regionals !" He shouted. Toru gave him a small tired smile and joined in with the cheering. They made it.
Chapter Text
Toru sighed, resting his head on the desk. The performance really took a lot out of him, and the celebration that came after kept him up all night long. It was currently lunchtime for Toru, and at this moment he really didn't feel like eating. It would've been nice if his friends would let him sleep. Koyuki was calling his name and Hijiri was talking noisily with Asahi. The only two that weren't making much noise was Kuga and Tokita, and how he was thankful for that.
"Toru-kun," Koyuki exclaimed, "are you feeling alright? You look tired."
Toru lazily glanced up at the student council president. "Correction, I am tired," Toru stated taking his head off of the desk. Light bags hung under his eyes. Exhaustion was quite visible to anyone who caught a glimpse of him.
"What the heck did you do last night?" Asahi asked, swiping a rice ball from his bento without any protest from the owner. "Midterms aren't even close." She took a quick bite out of the rice ball.
"I was watching cat videos," he muttered sarcastically. He watched Asahi shoot him a glare before taking another rice ball from his bento.
Kuga stopped talking to Tokita and turned around to Toru. "Mizushima-kun it's not good to stay up for too late," Kuga remarked, noting that the wings on his back turned a tired light blue to a annoyed orange. "I heard that if you stay up too late for too long it can damage your brain."
"Yeah, Nanase is right!" Koyuki scolded, jumping to his side, "you always need a good seven hours of sleep at most. Don't you agree Tokita-kun?" Tokita was caught off guard. Since when was he involved in Mizushima well-being? He sighed in defeat and nodded, knowing that a Nanase would probably scold him if he were to not answer.
Hijiri grinned nonchalantly, his head resting on his hand. "Aw come on guys, give him a break," he insisted, narrowing his eyes, "the poor little baby needs a break."
"Don't patronize me Hijiri," Toru hissed, glaring at his childhood friend, "honestly knock it off, I'm alright just tired, okay no need to worry, so don't chide me." He was completely awake and disgruntled.
Koyuki was dissatisfied with with his answer. "It's our job to worry we're your friends," She protested, staring him down with a disapproving glare, "we can't just let you go through sleepless nights." She let out an exasperated sigh.
Toru frowned and started to pick apart his food. Annoyed, he looked up at Koyuki and rolled his eyes. "Fine, if I get a good night sleep will you get off my back?" He asked. Half-heartedly shoving a pickled vegetable in his mouth.
"Yes," She replied, eyeing him suspiciously.
Toru saw Kuga giggling softly to herself. It probably had to do something about what Koyuki thought of him at the moment. He wasn't dense, he knew that everyone around him wanted the two together get together, but he begged to differ. Koyuki was a popular girl, just being with her made him feel unclean. Someone so pure trying to get close to someone, so broken. It just didn't feel normal. He knew of his own feelings towards her, but he wanted to keep that to himself. Koyuki deserve someone much better.
He snapped his up after he heard a familiar tune. It was soft, but there was no doubt about what the song was. He heard it a million times already, in and out of that shabby place that King called the headquarters. He had turned to where that source of the music was. Tokita? He got up from where he sat and cautiously walked towards him glancing over his shoulder.
"What you watching there Tokita?" Toru asked, trying to see what exactly was on his phone screen. Tokita took one look at Toru then handed him his phone. Toru knew it. There it was, a video from last night battle. He knew that one would be posted, but he didn't think it would come out this quickly How thankful he was for King's idea about the face paint. It was almost impossible to realize that Phantom was him. He did a double take at Tokita. What was he doing watching this?
"Oh Tokita I didn't know that you were interested in this kind of thing," Hijiri commented, "I mean it doesn't really look like something up your alley." Kuga perked up curious about what they could be talking about.
"I'm not," Tokita deadpanned, taking his phone back from Toru. "I heard a few students talk about it and thought I might check it out."
"Whatcha guys talking about?" Asahi asked, taking small strides towards the boys.
Hijiri beat them in answering. "Tokita is watching a dancing video," he reported, "it was apparently from last night, a battle between that Hip Hop Rebels and what are they called again? The Heroes of Dance?" He asked, unsure.
"The Heroes of the Floor," Toru automatically responded, not really thinking about who he was talking to, he went on. "they're actually a pretty good team. Their choreography never cease to amaze me. Being able to win even after they have so much pressure on their shoulders is impressive I've to admit King is a...." He trailed off after realizing who he was talking to. All eyes were on him for a moment. He was dead. He could see Hijiri with that annoying smirk of his when he discovered something new.
Koyuki's eyes started to sparkle as she drew closer to Toru. "Wow I didn't know that you liked dance teams Toru!" She exclaimed in delight, "Don't stop, tell us more."
"Yeah Toru," Hijiri chirped, with a condescending smile, "come on we would love to know more."
Toru shot a glare at his friend. If he tried avoiding their plea they would bug him endlessly and if he lied Asahi would notice immediately. "Tch, I'm just interested in them," He muttered, "it's not really a big deal."
"Well, we really don't know much of your hobbies, so it's kind of interesting to see you talk about something so passionately," Asahi pointed out.
"So, Mizushima do you dance?" Tokita asked, catching Toru off guard.
"I don't see how that's any of your business," Toru shot back more harshly then he intended to, trying to avoid the question in the best way he could.
"I'm just curious," Tokita deadpanned, taken aback by his harsh tone, "no need to get, so defensive."
"No, I'm sorry," Toru apologized, "I shouldn't have snapped at you guys, I'm just tired."
Kuga's smile reassured him. "It's alright, We shouldn't have pried, so much right, Harumi?" She asked. A terrifying aura surrounding her, daring her childhood friend to say something else.
"Sure Nanase," he mumbled, seemingly unaffected by the intense aura.
Toru felt himself relax a bit, seeing that the conversation about the dancing had died down a bit. He knew for sure that the topic was going to come up again soon, so he had to be sure he was prepared, but at the moment he wanted to enjoy the peace. Of course, that peace was short lived when Koyuki asked her question.
"Who's King?" She asked.
"W...w-what!" Toru sputtered, choking in air. Asahi him hard on the back stopping him from coughing.
"Ah!" She exclaimed in worry, "Are you okay Toru? Do you need some water?" She quickly ran to his side with some water on hand. How she had got that in mere seconds, no one would know.
Toru waved his hand dismissively. "No it's alright Koyuki," He assured, "King, huh well..." He paused for a second before continuing, "He's pretty much the leader of the Heroes I guess, from what I've see... seen he makes a good amount of the choreographs."
"Oh," Koyuki mused, clearly intrigued, "that's interesting, you admire him don't you?"
"No."
Asahi chuckled and rolled her eyes. "Sure Toru whatever you say," she teased as a devil's tail appeared on Toru's back. Even without her powers is was still quite obvious that he was lying. Toru just glared at her and stood up.
"Restroom," he muttered, leaving the room and closing the door behind him. Right after the crew made sure that Toru was out of listening distance before loudly chatting to one another.
"It seems like Toru's getting worse and worse at hiding things from us," Asahi snorted.
Hijiri nodded, lazily smiling. "He was way too defensive when deciding Tokita's claims," Hijiri pointed out. His friend should've known better then to think that the rest of them wouldn't notice.
Koyuki chuckled nervously. "How about we...wait this out for a little while and not make too many assumptions," Koyuki suggested.
"I believe that Sasamori-san is right," Nanase agreed, "we shouldn't jump into conclusion."
There was a small quiet agreement between all the friends. They just would have to wait and see if Toru would open up to them
Chapter 3: Chapter 3
Notes:
Thank you @Shironaii so much for betaing my story.
You're amazing
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Nanase didn’t need an Iris to see that the past week has not been very kind to Toru. For the past four days she saw him nodding off to sleep during lectures and drinking about five cups of coffee in one school day. She stole a look at the color of his wings, and they were a frustrated orange, while most days they were a cautious dark blue. During class, she would also see him massaging his neck almost as if he was sore all over, but she still didn’t know why. Nanase was just itching to find out why, but she respected Koyuki’s decision to give Toru some space.
It wasn’t until she saw a bruise hidden under his sleeve she started to be concerned for the Iris Zero’s life. Nanase knew that it might have been a bit too far-fetched to think that anyone was actually hurting him, but she couldn’t help, but come to that conclusion. Was it abuse from his family? Or was this something happening at school? She didn’t know if she should tell anyone. After all, she didn’t want to cause Toru unnecessary drama in his life, it was only just a bruise.
She decided to wait it out for a while. That didn’t stop her from trying to pry into his life through Hijiri. She confronted Toru’s childhood friend early in the morning. She knew out of everyone, Hijiri was usually, surprisingly, the first one at school. He sometimes come before Koyuki, the student body president who made it her duty to be there at 7:50 a.m sharp every morning.
Nanase found him sitting inside the library completely engrossed in his book. He didn’t seem to have noticed her yet. She slowly started walking towards the oblivious teen until she was right in front of him.
“Good morning Shinozuka-kun,” She chirped.
Hijiri nearly jumped out of his seat from the sudden voice coming from his front. “Ah! Kuga-chan,” He yelped trying to calm nerves, “g..Good morning, it’s a surprise to see you this early in the morning.”
“Oh, I just got ready much faster than I usually do,” Nanase replied, still giggling from Hijiri’s reaction. Spooking him like that was worth it.
Hijiri sighed. He knew that Nanase scared him just for her own amusement. And people wondered why he was slightly frightened of her. Hijiri closed his book knowing he wasn’t going to be able to finish it that morning. “Well, do you need anything?” He asked.
“Who said I was going to ask anything?” She replied, the corners of lips quirking up.
Hijiri scoffed, so they were playing this game now. “Oh please Kuga-chan someone as organized as you wouldn’t just happen to quickly get ready. You would probably take your time, so there was no reason for you to rush getting here. If you didn’t have anything to say, that is,” He observed, “and another thing, you usually come here with Tokita-kun why skip out on the quality time to spend with your best friend?”
Nanase sighed in defeat. “Well, you got me there,” she admitted, “I need you to tell me about Mizushima-kun’s family.”
Hijiri raised a brow. “And why exactly would you want to know about Toru’s family?” He asked suspiciously. She was a fool to think that Hijiri would give that information so easily.
“Because...” She started, trying to think of a convincing lie, “If I want to help Sasamori-chan get with Toru, I’m going to have to find out more about him.” She thought that it was convincing enough, but to make sure, she stole a glance his wings. They first started off as a dark blue color then slowly but surely then shifted into warm yellow. He believed her.
“Alright,” Hijiri reluctantly agreed. He didn’t want to Toru to be the one she had to get the information from. Not because he feared for Nanase, but for Toru. Who knew what kinds of things she would do to get information out of his best friend? .
“His family...” He began, coming up with the perfect way to describe them, “…is eccentric to say the least. They all enjoy messing with Toru, but it’s all fun and games. His mom and his two sisters are pretty nosy, but that’s only because Toru won’t tell them anything. They all want Toru to make some friends. The day I first came over, his mother nearly fainted in surprise.” Hijiri chuckled at the memory then continued, “If I had to be honest, Toru takes after his dad more than his mom. Much more stoic and serious then the rest of the family.” Hijiri paused thoughtfully before narrowing his eyes at Nanase, giving cool stare that sent shivers down her spine.
“If this is about how they treat Toru because he’s an Iris zero,” Hijiri remarked, eyes still holding that cold look, “they treat him just fine, those people are a few of the nicest people I’ve ever met.”
Nanase started to feel slightly on edge. She had only seen Hijiri like this when she was the Iris Hunter, and that wasn’t a very fond memory that she liked to remember. Nanase was about to reply, but a familiar face interrupted the conversation.
“Morning Hijiri, Nanase you two are early today.”
The two of them turned around to see Koyuki smiling at them, blissfully unaware of the conversation Hijiri and Nanase was having before. The two greeted Koyuki as if nothing had happened earlier, but the tension from the conversation still lingered.
Even though she was a bit shaken up, Nanase still got the information that she needed. Hijiri made it pretty clear that Toru’s family would probably die than do anything horrible to their son or brother. She could finally rest easy knowing that there wasn’t any trouble in his family life, but there was still that question; how did he get that bruise? Nanase decided to put off the investigation until the next day. She needed a break from the confrontation.
Hijiri would’ve been lying if he said that if he hadn’t been a bit too harsh on Nanase. Sure she was assuming the worst from his best friend's family, but he had no right to act so coldly to Nanase. He had been avoiding her all day trying to find a way to apologize to the girl. He just couldn’t find the words to say to her. He had a slight suspicion that the question was not actually for Sasamori, but if it really was for the love sick girl, Hijiri had just scared Nanase away for nothing.
Hijiri had considered all his options. He could ask Tokita how to apologize to the girl, but if he were to do that he would risk having to deal with an overprotective childhood friend, and that just seemed to exhausting to do. Asahi was completely out of the picture. if he tried to explain the situation to her he would have to face the wrath of a raging she-demon. He shuddered at the idea. Sasamori was just...no. She was too curious and would want to get deeply involved. The only option he had left was Toru or that girl Rei. He didn’t really know Rei too well, so he was left with Toru. Talking with Toru seemed that an iffy idea, but he was the only choice he had.
“Toruuuu!” Hijiri cried while running towards his best friend. School had just ended and Toru was just about to leave the school when Hijiri slung his arm around his neck. “Toru I messed up!”
Toru tiredly looked up at Hijiri, half expecting him to say something along the lines of ‘I forgot to turn in my class work.’ but that didn’t seem to be the case today. “What is it Hijiri?” He asked while continuing to walk.
Hijiri took a deep breath before speaking. “I may or may not have accidentally terrified a girl,” he wailed.
Now that had Toru’s attention. “I’m listening,” He answered curiously. This story seemed worthwhile. Hijiri was one of the friendliest people that Toru knew besides Koyuki, but at least Koyuki didn’t have any motivations behind her attitude besides just making people happy.
Hijiri explained his situation albeit leaving large portions of the story. He didn’t tell Toru that he and Nanase were talking about him, nor did he tell his friend that they were talking about his family. To put it simply, Hijri told Toru that Nanase was asking him a question, but Hijiri had a bad morning, so he answered her coldly. That seemed to have fooled Toru, because he went along with the story.
After listening to Hijiri’s woes, Toru was quiet. He wasn’t really sure why Hijiri would come and ask him about a problem like this. He had a reputation for being cold and insensitive toward people. To be honest, the answer was simple. Hijiri just could go up to Nanase and apologize. Nanase would easily pick up on his sincerity and forgive him, but it seemed like that was an approach that Hijiri was trying to avoid. Then again he didn’t care much about what his friend wanted. Hijiri asked for his opinion so Toru offered it.
Upon hearing Toru advice Hijiri sighed. “Thanks Toru...I think I really needed someone to say that out loud,” He admitted.
Toru just waved his hand dismissively. “No problem,” He assured.
The two walked all the way to Toru’s house before splitting off into their own directions. Hijiri’s house was only a few blocks away from Toru’s place. Once he finally got inside he collapses in his bed. Toru was right, he knew all along that telling her up front was the way to go, but he just wasn’t too sure right now… he just hoped that it was going to work.
Nanase wasn’t sure why she found herself up early in the morning at school again. It wasn’t like she needed to talk to Hijiri that day. She slightly shuddered at the thought of the teen. She was sure that Hijiri didn’t mean to act that way, but she could never be sure. Nanase walked around aimlessly until she ended up at her classroom. It was a practical place to wait, but it just didn’t feel right to be there right now. She walked some more until she found herself in front of the library.
She didn’t exactly know why, but instead of quickly leaving the area, she lingered. As she decided to leave, she heard someone call out her name. She turned her head only to see Hijiri putting down a book that he was reading to rush towards her. Nanase actually considered running away, but Hijiri was too fast anyways. When Hijiri finally approached Nanase couldn’t help but tense up. Luckily for her, he didn’t seem to notice.
“Shinozuka-kun, good morning,” She said, finally after a few minutes of silence, but instead of getting a normal greeting, Hijiri bowed. Nanase was taken aback by this action. Then she looked at his wings. Guilt.
“I’m so sorry!” He exclaimed his head still down, “I shouldn’t have just assumed what your intentions were, and I definitely didn’t have any right to just talk to you like that,” Hijiri confessed. mustering up all the sincerity he could.
“Shinozuka-kun…” Nanase started, “please put your head up,” she asked. Hijiri hesitantly raised his head. Nanase smiled at the teen. “I think I should be the one saying sorry,” she said, “You were just being a good friend. I pried too much, so I’m sorry.”
“No, it’s alright,” Hijiri exclaimed, “you were just curious, but why exactly did you want to know about his family?”
Nanase looked away for a second. “...I was being stupid,” she blurted, “I saw a bruise on him, and I assumed the worst.”
Hijiri took a few seconds to process what Nanase had just said and then he started laughing. Nanase felt her cheeks flush. She huffed and crossed her arms. Hijiri attempted to calm himself down, but he still was wheezing.
“S..sorry Kuga-chan,” he was able to say in between giggle, “I’m not laughing at you I swear, it’s just,” Hijiri’s sentence was interrupted by another chuckle. As his laughter died down Hijiri could finally explain the situation to Nanase.
“It’s just that Toru got that while trying to learn how to do a back handspring,” He explained, wiping an imaginary tear from his eye.
“Eh!”
“Yeah, his sister was trying to teach him how to do one and he ended up getting a bruise there,” Hijiri recalled.
Nanase sighed in relief. She was worried for nothing then. She felt kind of stupid. This whole thing could’ve just been avoided if she had just asked Toru. “That’s a relief,” She remarked, “well, now that we have that out of the way, Hijiri what was that book you were reading….”
Notes:
I'm sorry for the long absent, but I'm happy to say that I believe this story will have more frequent updates. Thank you for those of you that stuck around, or just new comers.
Chapter Text
The ballet studio was closed for the day. One by one, kids filed out of the building. They were all changed out of their tights and back into normal clothes. When the last kid went out a teacher attempted to turn off the lights, but she was quickly stopped by the headmistress. The teacher stood puzzled as the headmistress started to scold her. The headmistress ushered the teacher away, sending her home. As the sun started to set, a group of teenagers entered the building discreetly. One carried a small stereo in his right hand and some shoes in the left. They rushed through the hall to a large practice room.
Music that would probably be banned from a ballet studio blared full blast from the stereo. The teens stretch and prepared for another day of practice. There was excited chattering all around from their big win. It was their first practice after the finals, and the effects of the victory were still so raw. Once the headmistress of the studio entered in the conversations completely ceased. Her footsteps echoed across the room. Everyone stood attentive as she walked by them; all waiting for a sign of recognition. She turned on her heel facing towards all the dancers. Her stoic face completely melted away into a huge grin.
“You guys made it to Regionals!” She cheered, pumping her fist up into the air.
Her excitement caught on like a wildfire. Everyone cheered and hollered in victory. People hugged, some even with tears in their eyes. Other, who were more reserved smiled brightly. They weren’t majority, but their joy was visible. Toru stood in the sidelines as he saw the celebration. The corners of his mouth perked up ever so slightly at the sight of his fellow teammates, but then quickly disappeared when someone jump on his back. Letting out a ear piercing yelp, he toppled over backwards and collapsed on his attacker.
“What the heck Toru!” the perpetrator whined, pushing Toru off of him.
Toru glared. “What are you shouting at me for?” he hissed, attempting to get up, “You dragged me down.” Toru pushed himself back to his feet. Right next to him, still lying on the ground, was a young boy puffing his cheeks, holding his arms out expectantly.
“Help me up,” he demanded, scowling at Toru.
“No way,” Toru scoffed. He spun around and walked the other way, leaving the young boy, still yelling on the floor.
“Wasn’t that I little bit too cold, even for you?”
Toru stopped in tracks. He turned until was face to face with a teen wearing an irritating smirk on his face. “I don’t know what you mean,” Toru replied coolly.
The teen whistled. “What’s with you today? Shouldn’t you be celebrating with the rest?” He asked, furrowing his bow.
Toru said nothing, but he pulled out a white envelope in reply. Taking the envelope and inspecting, the teen noticed crease marks covering the entirety of the envelope, sides from a wax seal on the back. The teen tried to stifle his chuckle at the ridiculous gesture. The seal had an ornate lotus print on it, framed by the initials L.F. Gingerly opening the envelope, trying not to damage the seal, he removed the letter inside and scanned its contents. As his eyes darted from one side of the page to the next, a smile grew on his face.
“What do you think I should do?” He asked after reading the letter.
Toru shrugged. “You’re the king, Akira,” He replied nonchalantly, “Whatever you decide I’ll go with it.” As a reply, Toru “What the heck!” He shouted, but Akira had already moved on.
“Everyone gather around!” Akira yelled over the music. He quickly walked over to the music and turned it off. A small crowd of people dropped what they were doing to circle around the teen.
After seeing that he had gathered the attention of the team, Akira continued. “Well, it seems like we got ourselves in a tricky situation here.” Confused chatters swept across the room, murmur morphing into shouts and cries.
“Okay guys, calm down!” Akira demanded. The chatter abruptly cut off abruptly. Akira held up the envelope that was given to him. “It seems that The Lotus has challenged us to a battle.”
“What?”
“No way!”
“Impossible.”
The Lotus had been harassing the Heroes for months with taunts and empty threats, but they had never dared to challenge. Their letters were mostly just a joke to the team. Well actually, they were more like a meme, but this letter changed everything. Feeling ranged from uncertain, to excited, or to just apathetic, on the matter, but one thing was clear; everyone had something to say. Some didn’t want to accept it. This team had more important thing to prepare for,’ they claimed, ‘the regionals, for example!’ Others couldn’t let this opportunity pass.
“We’ll be making a vote!” Akira shouted, trying to be heard over the crowd, “I’ll make a poll at the end of the practice, so GET BACK TO WORK!”
The team scattered back to their places. The announcement still weighing on the back of their mind, they attempted to go on with normal practice. Akira, on the other hand, was vibrating with excitement. Toru wasn’t too surprised by this behavior. Their leader was dying for an opportunity to compete against the Lotus. He wasn’t sure if the rest were too thrilled, but Toru couldn’t bother to think about it. Whether they accepted the challenge, or not wouldn’t affect the fact that they were still going to the regionals. And it definitely wouldn’t change the fact that they were going to win. Toru was certain of that.
____________
Toru was about to throw his phone across the room. The second he put it down his notification exploded . If he weren’t waiting for a call, he would’ve put his phone on silent without a hesitation. Only minutes passed before his phone had over a hundred messages. He couldn’t help but wonder, who was the genius who thought making a group chat for all twenty members of the team was a good idea? Toru shoved his phone in his pocket and stormed out of his room.
Hurriedly tried to change his demeanor while treading down the stairs, Toru took a deep breath and entered the dining room.
“Oi Onii-chan!” A voice shouted from the kitchen, “How about a hand, you lazy bum?” The comment was swiftly followed by a crash.
Toru chuckled at the noise. “Alright, alright I’m coming.” He replied, while walking to the kitchen. “And Yuki, leave the high cabinets to Haru. I can’t see you, but I know you’re making a mess.”
“HEY!”
Toru poked his head in the kitchen and stifled a laugh. Pots and pans were scattered all over the ground, flour dusted the air, and the cookbook was completely covered with a bunch of mysterious ingredients. Sugar, milk, salt, and other things were put out crowding the kitchen tops. Two girls frantically ran around the kitchen while checking their phone. One of the girls spotted Toru from the corner of her eye and glared at him.
“Quit dawdling and start helping,” She hissed, “Mom will be here any second.” The girl pushed a bowl into his arms.
“Okay boss,” Toru said. He wearily glanced down at the bowl. The bowl held a strange mixture that he could only guess was cake batter. Toru reluctantly started mixing, hoping that his father buy a separate cake. “Are you sure this is a cake? It looks more like food poisoning,” He teased.
“Shut up!” Yuki squeaked.
“I’m pretty sure that cake batter isn’t suppose to look like this,” Toru said. He held up his whisk to show the batter slipping right through the whisk with ease.
“We followed the recipe though,” Haru said.
Toru snorted. “Sure you did.”
___________
Miraculously, they were able to finish the cake in the nick of time. The three didn’t get to frost it like they planned to do, but to Toru’s surprise, the cake actually came out well, after many attempts. Shortly after Toru gave a helping hand, Haru discovered to add more flour to the batter, so they completely discarded their wet mixture and started over. Much to Haru’s dismay. Thankfully, their mother called Toru to say that she was running late that evening. They were given a little bit over an hour to make the cake, at the very least, edible.
Their father came only ten minutes before their mother arrived. The second he saw the kitchen, he let out an exasperated sigh. He quickly took charge in cleaning the area, commanding Toru and Yuki to do so as well. Haru attempted to rush some icing on the first layer, but before she could even squeeze the icing out of the bag, the front door slammed open.
A middle aged women came charging in with a furious look on her face, ranting on and on to herself and Spitting out horrible curses under her breath. She stormed into the kitchen with the intent to kill, but she froze at the state in which her kitchen was in. The lady tore her eyes from the kitchen and stared at her children and her husband. The four tensed, as she shifted her view to them. The unreadable look on her face only fueled their anxiety.
Then she laughed.
The women threw her head back and let out a hearty laugh. The four were caught off guard, but they quickly joined in. Her laughter was infectious. One by one all of them were smiling like there was no tomorrow. It was one of the moments where the rare sight of their father smiling was a seen. Although they were all covered in flour and icing, they all were hugging each other tightly. All frustration and anger was forgotten as they enjoyed this moment.
When the family finally settled down Yuki rushed over to present the cake. It was supposed to be a mocha cake, but they ended up settling for a chocolate mocha cake, after discovering they didn’t have enough mocha. There were misshapen dollops on the cake and to top them off were strawberries. Yuki set down the cake in the dining room. Two candles were placed right in the middle of the cake. Mr. Mizushima struck a match and lit the candles. Suddenly the lights went out, and the only light source they had was the candles.
Toru slowly started singing to a familiar tune that everyone there knew. When the first note was sung everyone joined in.
“Happy Birthday to you~
Happy Birthday to you
Happy Birthday Dear Mother
Happy Birthday to you”
Mrs. Mizushima paused right after the song was over. She smiled thoughtfully before finally blowing out the candles.
“Happy Birthday, dear.”
_____________
Toru collapsed on his bed. Baking that cake had taken a lot out of the the young teen. For the second time that night, Toru checked his phone. Just as expected, hundreds of messages filled his home screen. Before he even unlocked his phone, a certain message caught his eye. ‘The Poll has been closed.’
“Finally,” Toru muttered.
Toru swiped left to check the message. Ignoring the sea of messages, Toru scrolled up to see the results from the poll. Unsurprisingly, he had to scroll up a great deal to find his answers. The poll disappeared from his reach, as tens of thousands messages bombarded the chatroom. When Toru finally found the poll, he was slightly irritated by the winner. It just meant they had much more work to do than intended. Toru tossed his phone aside and got up from the bed. He pulled out a notebook, turning to a new page. He wasn’t going to get sleep anytime soon. Jotting down the header, Toru let out a deep sigh. It read,
“Strategies Against the Lotus.”
Notes:
Hey guys it's the author here. A while ago I noticed that the Iris zero Fandom was... nonexistent to say the least. I felt like it would be nice if there was a place for people who like the manga to chat about stuff so *drumroll*
i created a discord server. https://discordapp.com/invite/BqZQstQ I hope this can at least bring a group of people who like Iris Zero together.
Chapter Text
Koyuki was curious in nature. Everyone around her had already knew this fact. No matter how hard she tried to resist her urges, it was no use. Her curiosity had won in the end, like always. Surprisingly enough, she didn’t give into her curiosity for a good two weeks. Though it didn’t seem very impressive to others, it was quite a feat, if you asked her. It wasn’t like she meant to search it up. It just happened. She attempted to avert her eyes from the screen, but her efforts were worthless. Typed in on the search bar was,
‘
Heroes of the Floor’
Filling the computer were pictures, articles, and videos on the said group. Clicking on each one of them, Koyuki could help but watch in awe. The videos didn’t exactly have the best quality, but the performances were still able to blow her away. And they were only high schoolers! No wonder Toru was so interested in them. They were quite popular in the street dancing community, so it seemed. The Heroes were one of top ten dance teams in Kanto. She was sure it was quite an amazing accomplishment for a high school team. Koyuki marveled at their uniforms. At first glance, they seem pretty standard, but in proper speculation, you could see small badges on the side of the sleeves. One of their uniforms had a crown, another a ghost, and on and on. A final touch was a mask painted on their face. Masks that greatly resembles one of western superheroes.
Quite fitting.
After doing some researching, she came across their website. The website had a neat formatting. One that was simple enough for practical uses, but still had a bit of flair. On the top of the website were five tags. They were all sporting a different image, describing what each tag will take you to. In the side of the homepage was a news feed, listing all the things a fan would need to know. In the middle of the page was a brief summary of what exactly they were.
“A ragtag competitive street dancing team that’s ready to steal the crown.“
While browsing around the page to pass the time, she pressed on the calendar tag. A large calendar filled up the page. All the dates were color-coded respectively. Yellow being the important events, Pink being less important, and red being breaks. Koyuki’s eyes quickly fell on the first event, nearest to today. It was a battle in only five days. Her cursor hovered over the date. Wasn’t she free that day?
The class president opened a new tab to her own personal calendar. Her week was completely booked out. It was club inspection week after all. But coincidentally, that day was a free day. Of course, she had tedious paperwork to do, however, the rest of the day was free game for her. It wouldn’t hurt to check out the battle, even if she was only there for a little while. After all knowing what Toru’s interests are might help her understand him.
This trip was for research purposes only.
As the day of the battle was nearing, Toru’s sleep schedule was being sacrificed. Hours a day, he subjected himself to the task of analyzing the Lotus. From videos to articles, Toru scanned them all. It was driving him up the walls. He couldn’t comprehend why Akira decided to host this battle so soon. Was the captain trying to kill him? If he was, it was working. Heavy bags hung below his eyes. Worse than the ones right after the finals.
Noticing a brighter tint in his curtain, Toru stared there, puzzled. He swiftly moved to obtain his phone. Picking up his phone, he turned it on. He winced as the light from the phone assaulted his retinas. After adjusting to the unfamiliar brightness, Toru sputtered when he saw the time. He frantically scrambled to the window, violently pulling back the curtains.
Past all the trees and cityscape a horrid sight was peaking out of the horizon. It's rays tainting the dark skies with its blood orange color. That light was almost like a signal. Collectively all the lights in his house turned on. Toru glare at the bright beast and cursed aloud. If he passed out in class, he would blame that slave driving King. Irritated he snagged his phone and punched in a time, 7:40 a.m. He set the alarm and promptly collapsed on the bed. Feeling the weight on his eyelids, he closed them. Attempting the welcome the sweet comfort of sleep.
He was going to get some sleep, darn it.
Just then the lights filled the entire room. Toru didn’t even stand a chance. His reaction disheveled, by his lack sleep, left him defenseless from being stripped of the blanket. Once again his eyes were attacked, ruthlessly. Toru glared at assaulter. A girl stood before him smugly.
“Rise and shine brother~,” She sung triumphantly.
“Give. Me. My. Blanket,” Toru hissed.
The girl held up the blanket. “Oh, you mean this?” With that, she dropped the blanket.
Toru groaned and defiantly toppled back down on his bed. “Give me an hour, Yuki,” he said, voice muffled by a pillow, “I have time.”
Yuki furrowed her eyebrows. “What’s with you?” She asked, “Did you stay up all night?”
“...Yes”
Yuki had no words for her brother. A deadpan expression crossed her face as she left his room. Toru could hear her muttering to herself, exasperated. Toru rolled to the other side of his bed and grabbed his blanket. Doing his best to covers his shield his eyes, he fell back into a dreamless slumber... or so he thought.
“BROTHER!”
“OH FOR GOODNESS SAKES!”
Toru never did get his sleep that day.
“Tired again Toru?”
The Iris Zero lazily lifted his head from his desk. While rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he looked at the source of the voice. Koyuki was standing right in front of the desk cocking her head to the side. Toru could help but give a tired smile. Those rich amber eyes sparkled in curiosity. If he had the choice he could stare at them all day long.
“Quite obvious, isn’t it?” Toru said.
Koyuki let out a huff. “Toru, you promised,” She complained.
Guilt crept up his spine. He did promise, but it wasn’t like he tried to stay up all night. He lost track of time. Toru avoided Koyuki’s piercing gaze, quiet. He could see from the corner of his eye, Koyuki’s disappointed look. Toru cursed her saddening crestfallen face. That face was going to be the death of him. Accepting his fate, Toru allowed Koyuki to chew him out for his lack of sleep.
“We’ve told you how bad it is to stay up late!” Koyuki exclaimed, flailing her arm, “Don’t you remember what Nanase told you?”
“I know…”
Koyuki cut him off furiously. “Really? Because it doesn’t seem like that’s the case. Brain damage, Toru. Brain Damage. Do you understand how serious this is.” She pulls out her phone and started typing with inhuman speed. Once she finds what she was looking for the girl shoves her phone in her face. Toru snorted at the contents of the phone.
“Damaging effects of lack of sleep? More likely than you think.”
Koyuki glared at his reaction. “This is serious, Toru.”
“I can see that.”
Koyuki snatched her phone back, left it on the desk, then stormed out of the room, leaving a very confused Toru sitting at his desk. He took this time to pull out his notebook. Flipping to the tab, written Lotus, Toru scanned his writing to double check it. His team couldn’t afford a misguiding battle plan, not after that last one. Toru visibly shuddered at the memory, shaking it away before he indulged in it for any longer. He wasn’t one to dwell in the past.
Several moments later Koyuki came charging back into the room, dragging Asahi along with her. Asahi didn’t seem to be resisting. In a matter of fact, it looked like she was going to punch Toru in the face. Toru let out a groan before having to submit himself to the torture of two hotheads screaming his ear off. Did the fates hate him or something? Keeping his head down, he attempted to focus his attention on the notebook. “The Lotus don’t do too well under pressure. Once their captain stumbles the other start to get disheveled. This would be the time to strike.”
“...Toru are you even listening to us?”
“No?”
Koyuki let out a groan and flopped on the desk. “Tooru, for goodness sakes,” She muttered, “what could be so important to not sleep?”
Toru shrugged. A loud buzz interrupted their conversation. Toru’s eyes fell on the illuminating phone screen, exposed for all to see. Toru didn’t miss the notification that popped up before Koyuki frantically removed it from their view. Toru was… unsurprised to say the least. He had a suspicion that the new revolution would to something like this.
“You’re checking out the battle?” Toru inquired offhandedly.
Koyuki stiffly nodded, expecting something, anything to come out of Toru’s mouth, but was met with only a ‘hm’. Asahi raised an eyebrow at the scene played in front of her.
“Alright then,” Toru finally replied.
Koyuki sputtered. “What!” She exclaimed, slamming her hands against the desk. “Just ‘alright then’ nothing else.”
Toru’s eyes widened in bewilderment. “...Yeah? What did you want me to say?” Toru asked.
“You were..so..so defensive a few days ago,” She stammered.
“So?”
Koyuki fumbled with her words, struggling to come up with something to say. “You...you’re.” Koyuki let out huff of frustration. “Toru you are just impossible, you know that?”
“Eh, okay” Toru mumbled, “Just enjoy yourself out there.” He buried himself into his arms, resting on the desk. From the corner of his eye, he could see Koyuki let out a sigh. “Just tell me how it goes.”
“You’re not going?” She asked.
“Nah, doesn’t seem like an interesting match-up,” Toru’s voice was muffled by his arms.
Koyuki hesitated. “...If you say so,” She murmured, while grabbing Asahi by the wrist, dragging her out.
“What’s going on? Oi Koyuki,” Asahi protested, still confused on what they were conversing about.
The studio’s atmosphere darkened. For the last hour Akira and a few others watched recorded videos of the Lotus’ matches. They never really saw a reason to check them out before, but now the reality was looming above them. The Lotus were immensely good. If they had entered the tournament in their best state, they would’ve definitely taken the Hero’s spot. Akira shut off the small screen and picked up a clipboard. He checked off the names off the list until he landed on one.
“Huh it looks like Tanizaki isn’t here today,” Akira mused, scanning the studio’s room. It was a strange occurrence for their responsible upperclassman to be late. “Anyone know where she is?”
Hundreds of voices called out to Akira, incoherent jumble of words being thrown around for their captain to hear. Akira let out a curse from under his breath. There really should be an easier way to do this. He cupped his hands around his mouth and took a deep breath. “QUIET!” He shouted.
Abruptly all noise in the room ceased. Only echoes of their former voices filled the silence. Akira pointed to a boy in the front of the room. “Haruka,” he started, “do you have any idea where Tanizaki is?”
Haruka nodded, letting out a snort. “You’re already having memory loss, boss?” he teased, “wonder how long it’ll be till you break your back.”
“Haruka,” Akira warned.
“Fine,” he huffed, crossing his arms. “Tanizaki-senpai has a doctor’s appointment today, remember?”
Their captain hit his own head. “God,” he muttered, “I totally forgot.” Akira spotted Toru strolling into the room, his eyes never leaving his phone. A devious smile crossed his face. “Toru!” He called out, waving his hand.
Toru lifted his head then let out a sigh. “What do you want Akira?” He asked while walking towards the two.
“It seems like Tanizaki can’t come today,” Akira explained. “You’ll have to pair up with someone else today.”
Toru shrugged apathetically. “Alright then, with who?”
Akira, smiling apologetically, gestured to the young boy standing right next to him. Toru scowled at Akira, a protest bubbling up in his throat. The young boy didn’t look any better, cursing at their captain demanding a change. Akira didn’t hesitate to run and cowered behind another teammate. The person looked over her shoulder, rolling her eyes. The boy flinched at the sight of the person, begrudgingly turning away from their captain. Toru hissed at Akira while the person was still looking away. He didn’t want to be scolded by the headmistress.
The boy bobby pinned his bangs out of the way, still glowering at Akira. “I’m going to kill you,” he muttered, clenching his fist.
“How about not sending me death threats and get practicing, Haruka~” Akira sang, his lips twitching upward.
“Go die.”
Toru dragged his feet over to an empty area on the floor. He kicked off his tennis shoes and slipped on his dancing shoes. Haruka was already set and ready to go, waiting for his upperclassman to hurry up. Toru hastily got up, towering over the boy by a few inches.
“I still don’t forgive you,” Haruka pouted, raising his chin up ever so slightly.
The Iris Zero scratched his head. “Wha…?”
“Are you kidding me!” Haruka exclaimed, flailing his arms. His red hair fizzing along with his frustration. “Two weeks ago, you pushed me off your back and never helped me up.”
“That’s it?” Toru deadpanned, running his hand through his hair. “Really dude, you jumped on my back. If anything you should be apologizing to me.”
“Not until you do it first,” the redhead fumed, childishly crossing his arms.
“You are such a child,” Toru snapped, sitting down on the floor, “the sooner we finish stretching, the sooner we can get this over with.”
Haruka plopped himself down behind Toru. “ You are such a child, ” Haruka mocked. He pushed Toru’s back to its limit. The high schooler let out a wince as he stretched towards the ground.
The bickering never stopped, a few spectators watched in amusement as insults were thrown back and forth. Akira had to suppress a laugh. It was a nice way to liven up everyone’s spirits. If he had to be completely honest, Akira could’ve been partners with Toru, but this was a much better arrangement. Now all he just had to worry about was getting his moving boxes out of his old house.
Notes:
A/N um hey, here's another chapter... I'm sorry for not uploading this earlier, I'm sorry for making whoever reads this fic wait over 3 months for this chapter. When I started this fic, I knew that I would never be able to update quickly. I always told myself, Once a month, at least once a month, but you see how that turned out. I want to be able to stick with that promise and actually update this once a month. I hope that you can trust me, and I hope that I can fulfill that promise.
Chapter Text
Toru sluggishly forced himself to arrive at the studio. Miraculously, the night before he was able to get a full eight hours of rest. Akira’s direct order. That troublesome captain robbed him of his notebook and sent him home an hour early, in the previous practice. He desperately wanted to be at practice that night. Idling at home was torturous. Koyuki’s face kept appearing in the back his mind He tried to distract himself with the content written in his notebook.
Koyuki was coming.
The Iris Zero did think of the possibility of her coming. He thought up scenarios in his head on how this would all play out, but it could never aid in the reality. She may just find out. She may find out that Phantom was actually him. Toru shook his head. No, there was no way. He probably would never even see her. There would be hundreds of people there. What are the chances of even seeing her?
He kicked opened the door and what he was met with. Well, it could only be described as a mental breakdown.
People were dropping like flies. Death looked as if it had swept through the studio room. The stench of sweat and metal radiated out of the room in waves of hazardous waste. Zombies stumbled around, mouths gaping open and forming. Dark bags hung heavy over their eyes. Some had already collapsed on the ground, reaching for their last saving grace. A bottle of water. Others were passed out on the floor. Limp limbs sprawled all around him. Making his way through the bodies were like trying not to step on a landmine. One would set off all of them.
Toru jumped. A spidery creature latched onto his legs. Its lanky arms wrapped around him. Its grip could rival one of an anaconda. Toru scowled at it, trying to shake off the ghostly creature to no avail. Feeling defeat, Toru dragged his feet along with the creature.
“I regret everything,” It moaned, voice muffled by the ground.
Toru, hunting through a cardboard box, hummed in agreement. “Now, now Akira what did we learn today?”
Akira let out a dramatic sigh. “Not to use the excuse,’ I don’t have to go to school today’ to work myself and everyone else to death.”
“And what are we going to do with that lesson?”
Akira picked up his head, flashing a cheeky smile. “To take it and throw it out the window,” He cheered.
With one final attempt, Toru kicked off the teen. Akira flung off the leg and landed on his back. The teen simply laid there, looking scandalized. “What the heck Toru, ow.”
Toru’s lips quirked up into a smirk. “Oh boo hoo,” he said, pulling out a megaphone from the box, “you have no one but yourself to blame.”
Toru clicked a button on the megaphone, turning it on. He raised the device to his mouth. Akira saw this a clasped his hands over his eyes. Taking a deep breath, Toru spoke,
“GET UP YOU IDIOTS, DO YOU WANT TO KEEP THE LOTUS WAITING!”
People shot up like a bunch on moles burrowing out, all alert and alarmed. A collective groan echoed throughout the room. They let out yawns and stretched their aching muscles. Satisfied with his work, Toru placed the megaphone down and sat down on the box. He watched as the rats scurry through the studio, grabbing their uniforms and assisting each other in their face paint. Precise and intricate details were applied to their masks. A couple of years ago it would’ve taken them ages to paint them on, but now they were done in ten minute flat.
Akira approached his phantom-like partner with relative ease. His feminine physique now camouflaged by his baggy uniform. His slick black hair was unexpectedly tied into a relaxed low bun. The dark pallets that his mask provided directly contrasted his ghostly pale skin. A starry night was displayed on his face for all to see. A crescent moon started the show. As the night went on shades and hues of blue, purple and black mixed together like a symphony. White stars dotted the night sky with its elegance. Finally, it faded away until it disappeared, leaving only the pale tones of flesh.
“How is moving going?” Toru offhandedly remarked.
“Oh it’s going great,” Akira squeaked, settling himself next to Toru, “I just visited my new school a few days ago, and trust me it’s a million times better than that stuffy ol’ private school.”
“That’s...nice, you seem relaxed for someone who spent five hours doing nothing but preparing for this battle,” Toru inquired, handing Akira a water bottle.
Akira shrugged. “Eh, I’m pretty alright now,” He said, “but what about you?”
Toru flinched. “What do you mean by that?” Toru hesitantly asked.
Akira pointed to Toru’s leg. Toru hadn’t even noticed that he had been bouncing it up and down for at least ten minutes. “You’re nervous all of a sudden,” Akira commented, “not exactly usual.”
“It’s nothing,” Toru quickly dismissed, “don’t worry about it.”
Akira leaned in closer. “Oh, now I’m curious,” he said slyly, “do tell.”
“Forget it,” Toru said, flicking Akira.
The captain’s head shot back in pain. He rubbed forehead, while scowling at Toru. “Geez Toru, I’m feeling the love here.” Akira began to unscrew his bottle cap. “With a reaction like that, people will think that a girl caused this.”
A flush crawled up Toru’s face. He quickly turned his back towards Akira. It was too late, recognition crossed Akira’s face.
“Oh my gosh, it’s a girl.” Akira jumped out of his seat beaming.
Toru squeaked, “Shut up!”
Akira let out a hearty laugh. “Fine,” he replied, “but you’re telling me all about this later.”
“No way.”
Akira didn’t reply automatically. Instead he chugged the water in his bottle and crushed it, wiping the excess water dripping off his chin. “I’m going to bug the ever loving crap out of you about this.”
“Tch, I’ll see you try.”
The GPS had led her to a relatively empty alley. The young girl double checked her location. Her phone insisted that she was in the right place. Koyuki paced around the area, seeing if her path would reroute. The sun was already starting to dip into the horizon. The light blue afternoon sky was replaced with a sunburst of orange. Shadows grew like weeds, stretching for miles. A couple of stray stars could be seen, attempting use what they could to light up the sky. Street lamps flickered on and off, age affecting their efficiency.
From the corner of her eyes, she saw a person suspiciously glance around the alley. The teen narrowed his eyes scouting the area for something. Koyuki scrammed out of the alley, eyeing the sketchy teen. She had been undetected by the teen. The guy advanced, hesitantly knocking on a small wooden door far dark corner of the alley.
The wooden door creaked. It’s hinges rusted with age. The corners rotted and curved, eating away at the wood, a parasite in disguise. The door opened a smidge revealing a single eye from the other side. An exchange of hushed whispers was spoken. The distance prevented any opportunity for eavesdropping. She saw the teen make a face of agreement. The door swung completely open and he slipped in.
Koyuki stood there, stalking the door. ‘Was this illegal?’
She began to backtrack. Turning on her heel she took a step forward, with every intention to leave, when tap on her shoulder stopped her in her tracks. Koyuki tensed up. She could only assume the worst. Stiffly she turned her neck to face the person.
Her eyes met an unfamiliar set of eyes. The person wasn’t even kneeling or adjusting his body to level himself with her. He was just as short as she was. Koyuki suppressed a grin, terrified to insult someone she just met. The boy leaned in, eyes furrowed in confusion. His neon blue hair fell over his eye.
“Are ya jus’ goin’ to stand here?” He asked, brushing his hair out of his eyes, “or are ya goin’ come in, you’ll miss ta show.”
She was taken aback. She wasn’t used to strangers approaching her so casually. His thick Osakan accent had her baffled. “Eh, well…”
Koyuki had no time to finish her sentence as a realization struck the boy. “Ah, you’re new here ain’tcha,” He chuckled, grabbing her by the arm. “Well, why didn’t ya say so before?” The boy grinned, his smile stretching from ear to ear. “Ya should be glad ya ran into me then.”
The boy tugged on her sleeve and physically pulled her to the door. He rapped his knuckles on the door until someone pulled it open. Exactly like before, only a single eye was revealed. That one eye glowered at the boy, scowled even. The boy stared, unflinching.
“Beautiful night, ain’t it Tadashi. Mind lettin’ the pretty lady and I in?” The boy practically yelled. His fingers tapping on the door frame. Koyuki couldn’t help but feel pity for the man on the other side.
The man grunted before widening the door so the two of them could easily slip through. The man was humongous and bulky. Toned muscles bulging through his shirt. His face was in a permanent state what seemed to be malice. Koyuki coward behind her guide, leaving only a step between the two. The boy hummed a joyous melody as they went down the limitless hall.
“Ah’m Kazuma Amano,” He introduced, pointed both thumbs towards himself, “mosh pit extraordinaire, I can get ya in and out in a flash.”
“Nice to meet you Amano-san,” Koyuki replied, “my name is Koyuki Sasamori.”
“Well Sasamori, your in for a ride.”
The question still lingered in Koyuki’s mind. Was she now a criminal? She continued to look over her shoulder observing the hall around her. The air was crisp and musty clotting up her nose. Single light bulbs hanged low from the ceiling, illuminating the area around, providing enough light to see what was in front of them, but not enough to see farther ahead. The walls were covered in chipped, gray paint that barely masked the horrendous wallpaper that stood there before.
“Are we doing something illegal!” She blurted. Koyuki immediately slapped her hand over her mouth.
Bewildered, the boy turned to Koyuki. She panicked stepping a few steps backward. Her instincts telling her to DROP EVERYTHING AND RUN!
Amano cackled, doubling over in laughter. He was shaking so much that Koyuki was afraid he’d fall over. “Oh...my...GOD!” He breathed in between laughter. Koyuki hovered below him, making sure he wouldn't topple over. Amano took deep breaths, wheezing as he finally started to settle down. He wiped is watering eyes. “Ya really think that tis is illegal, eh?” He said, stifling a laugh, “Nah, Tadashi’s only there ta keep away unwanted visitors. Lately, we’ve been gettin’ some...what’s ta word? Ah nasty folks down here.”
Koyuki let out a breath of relief. She relaxed her muscles and followed him. A heavy weight on her shoulder relieved. The self-proclaimed mosh pit extraordinaire chatted throughout the walk down the hall. As they began to track deeper into the hall, more people started to appear along the walls. The boy smiled and gave a wave, greeting them with the same energetic tone. Koyuki attempted to aver her eyes and kept her eyes on the floor.
Koyuki squinted her eyes to make out bright neon light flashing at the end of the hall. The floor was violently shaking to the beat of the bass. A faint, muffled, melody echoed through the halls. Amano nodded his head ever so slightly to the beat, his blue hair happily bouncing up and down. As they got closer the lights became brighter, the volume of the music increase, and the ground felt like an earthquake cracking open wide. She felt her stomach churning, the bass shaking her insides. Groups of people now inhabited the exit.
Once again Amano grabbed her by the hand and guided her through the crowd. “Hold on tight alright,” He told her, tightening his grip on her wrist.
Panting, Koyuki attempted to keep up with him. Exposed bodies rubbed against each other, transferring sweat. The flashing lights aided in her discomfort. Her body swayed, struggling to stay up on her feet. She stumbled as the floor vibrated. Breath quicking, Koyuki was drowning. Constant walls of people cornered her in the crowd. She desperately pushed her way through the sea of dancers. The bright green hair was nowhere to be found. His hand still clutching her arm. Finally, she saw a light at the end of the tunnel. With one final push, she was free.
She took in the sweet taste of freedom. She felt nothing pressing against her, not a single radiating heat could touch her. All the noise fell deaf to her ears. Koyuki hung her head, wiping the sweat from her forehead. The boy let go of her wrist, once again tapped her on the shoulder. Koyuki slowly raised her head, still recovering from the violation of her personal space. The first thing she saw was Amano. His mouth was open wide, yelling over the music. Koyuki furrowed her eyebrows, the words drowning in the crowd. The boy rolled his eyes and pointed to the stage. She followed the direction of his fingers until her eyes landed on a breathtaking sight.
A burst of movement exploded before her very eyes. Blazing spotlights narrowed her view until she could only see two people. She was there; she was finally there. Right in front of her was that unmistakable mask, baggy camo pants, and plain old black tank; it was no other than a member of the Heroes of the Floor. Standing there, live, it was an experience that not even the highest quality video could ever capture. The high tempos were exhilarating. The bass syncing up with her beating heart. The dancers switched effortlessly, battling it out until humiliation. Their eyes burned with unwavering determination, piercing the souls of their enemies. Sweat glistened on their faces, brightening their faces with a glow.
Two members of the Heroes hoisted one of their own on their hands. Koyuki let out a gasp as they tossed the girl backward, towards the opposing team. Koyuki desired to cover her eyes, but her hands were in a paralyzed state. Horrified, she watched the girl bent her back backward, flipping two times mid-air. Her feet slammed against the shiny wooden stage. A devilish smile spread across the girls. She mockingly shouted something inaudible to the person standing directly in front of her. Koyuki couldn’t resist a holler. Cheering at the top of her lungs, she missed a fond smile sent her way. She stood there for what seemed like hours, adrenaline pumping through her veins. She shouted and jumped, having the time of her life.
A young teenager was pushed in front and center. Koyuki’s eyes tracked his every move. His slicked back hair revealed an unblemished white mask. The bottom of the mask melted away like ectoplasm. She heard the DJ call out out through the speaker. He addressed the teen as ‘Phantom’. Something about the teen felt unsettlingly familiar to her, she just couldn’t put her finger on it. Koyuki blinked and the teen was already on the ground. She heard the sound of cheers assault her ears.
Breakdancing, she had never seen it up close. Her mind tried to keep up with every last detail. The teen was quick and nimble, taking away her breath with his choreography. Step after step overfilling with passion and grit. He held himself up with only his arms, twisting his body in ways that made her shudder. She gazed up at the teen in utter admiration. He looked down to the audience, scanning the crowd until,
Their eyes met.
Frozen and wide eyed, the teen stumbled and collapsed on the ground. Koyuki winced. The teen quickly got back up and retreated into the safety of his team. Koyuki swore she saw a tint of pink shading his face. She felt her own face flushing. For how long? She shook her head, attempting to erase the strange incident from her head. She directed her attention back at the stage.
The slip up was a blow to the Heroes winning start, scale tilting toward the Lotus’s favor. Struggling to stay afloat, the Heroes shoved another boy to the head of the team. Confidence surrounded the boy as he stepped forward. The Lotus scrunched up their faces, insulted by the appearance of the teen.
“HERE COMES THE KING EVERYBODY!” The DJ yelled from his booth.
‘King’ spun circles around his opponent; his loyal subjects, quickly following his lead. He gave no opportunity for holes in his formation. Koyuki, for the first time, looked at Amano who led her there. He was completely pulled in by King’s performance. His mouth was slack jawed, his expression only holding the utmost respect. She turned back to the battle, smiling widely. King and his men held off until the very last second. The music cut off and an air horn blew. Everyone on the stage turned back to their own side, hushed whispers erupting from each side.
“That,” She breathed, still staring at the stage, “that was amazing.”
Amano chuckled. “Glad to know ya enjoyed it, newbie.”
“EVERYONE!” The DJ boomed, walking to the middle of the stage with a mic. “The committee has decided, and the results are in.”
The chatter began to die down. Their fullest attention on the DJ. The boy bit his lip, literally vibrating with excitement. Koyuki fiddled with her fingers, staring hard at the DJ. The man took a deep breath before announcing,
“And the winner iS…..THE HEROES OF THE FLOOR!”
“Well, ‘ow was it?” Amano asked, still bouncing up and down from the adrenaline.
Sticky, wet, and drenched in sweat, Koyuki was grinning so hard her mouth was starting to get tired. The two of them had found a secluded area to take a breather from the mosh pit. Although she needed time away from the pit, to recharge her energy, she was itching to go back. “I just don’t have words,” Koyuki started, “I have never felt so alive. The dancing, the music, the competition, it was amazing, no...there needs to be a better word than that.” Koyuki pondered over the list of words that could’ve been associated to the experience.
“Spectacular, breathtaking, stunning...” Amano listed, sporting a smirk.
“Phenomenal!” Koyuki cut in. That’s the word.”
Amano blinked a few times, before letting out a chuckle. “Ooh tat’s a new one,” he said. “It’s strange though, I’ve never ‘een Phantom slip up like this before,” Amano muttered quizzically. Furrowing his eyebrows, he said, “Ah wonder what happen’d?”
Koyuki felt her cheeks flush once more as she recalled what had happened earlier. “Yea… Yeah,” She stuttered, “anyways, thanks for bringing me here Amano, I would’ve never forgiven myself if I had just left.”
He waved his hand in dismissal. “‘Ey no problem,” He said nonchalantly, “it’s always a pleasure Koyuki.”
“Um, excuse me miss.”
Koyuki stopped to face a teen in an oversized hoodie. A mane of hair fell down past his shoulders. His face was bright red, and sweat stuck to his hair to his face. If she didn’t know better, she would’ve thought he was up on that stage competing. “Yes?” She replied.
He held out a neon pink wallet. A very familiar wallet. “I believe that you dropped this on your way out,” He said.
Flustered, she gingerly took the wallet and checked for its contents. Relief came over her when she saw that nothing was missing. “Thank you so much,” She exclaimed.
“It’s no problem,” He said, scratching the back of his neck, “I’m just glad I was able to catch up to you before I left.” He let out a sigh. “Keep better care your stuff around here, we have a bunch of sketchy characters who would love to get you their hands on that.”
“I will,” She assured.
“AKIRA!”
“Alright, I’m coming!” He hollered back. He shot a small smile towards the girl then ran into the crowd of people, disappearing within the sea of dancers.
“Well ain’t you jus’ a lucky girl today,” Amano teased.
Koyuki looked up at the sky. Stars glistened and flickered, dancing in the night sky. A limitless number of them occupied the heavens. It seemed as if all these stars came together to make this night more magical. The young girl smiled. “I guess I am.”
Omake
“So.. her name is Koyuki?” Akira started.
“I’ll give you five seconds to run,” Toru threatened, aiming his water bottle at Akira.
Akira cackled, running away from Toru. “I didn’t know that you had a thing for short girls!” he said.
“Get back here you dancing-otaku!” Toru yelled, chasing Akira down like a madman. “Stay still!”
The rest of the team present, watched in exasperation as the two played cat and mouse. How they had the energy to play those games was beyond them.
Notes:
This story is going on an indefinite hiatus. I've hit the point where I have lost motivation for this story and I need to prioritize. I want to be able to work on my other stories without this one holding me back. I'll definitely come back to this fic to finish it, but for now, I'll have to leave it as it is.
Shironaii on Chapter 2 Tue 22 Aug 2017 05:59AM UTC
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SKwriter on Chapter 2 Thu 24 Aug 2017 12:54AM UTC
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Shironaii on Chapter 2 Thu 24 Aug 2017 12:19PM UTC
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SKwriter on Chapter 2 Wed 18 Oct 2017 11:29PM UTC
Last Edited Wed 18 Oct 2017 11:30PM UTC
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Shironaii on Chapter 2 Thu 19 Oct 2017 08:59AM UTC
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