Visual Kei

It was not long before Kiiro's hand on my shoulder roused me from sleep. I rolled over, the thin blankets rustling loudly as I did so. The sky was a deep navy-black speckled with colorful stars and a lovely, nearly-full moon. The lonely orb cast a delicate and pale light into the room, softly illuminating the planes of Kiiro's face intensely, somehow almost exactly like storybook and movie vampires, but nothing of the sort.

"It's time to meet the Shinigami," he said tersely, ultimately shattering the dark little romantic mood I had conjured in place of the truth. "Hurry up."

I slid out of the bed and ran a hand through my hair before following him out of my room. He led me down the hallways again, but turned to a different route. We arrived at large stone doors which led to a lower level below the parking garage. I shot a nervous glance at Kiiro, who seemed not to care. I was hardly surprised that the Shinigami would make this place his lair. Kiiro gently pushed the doors open and yanked me in front of him, shoving me with convincing roughness at the Shinigami. With a sneer of triumph, he crossed his arms and eyed me.

The Shinigami was easily nine feet tall. It was fairly humanoid in structure with dark metallic skin that almost seemed to flow and ripple like liquid. Its eyes were so dark that they seemed to consume the light from the area around them. As far as I could tell, it had no irises or pupils… or anything resembling a typical human's eye structure. I shivered as it reached out with a swirling, knotting black tendril; it resembled a gnarled tree root. As it flicked across my skin, the trail it left was cold and slightly damp. I trembled, my entire body tingling with slow, permeating fear.

"So you are Alice," it growled, presumably not because it was angry, simply because its voice was not human in the least, but still managed to speak English. Strangely enough, the noise did not come from its face, but from a strange orifice situated between its collar bones that opened and closed, flashing a strange inner muscular structure as the air passed through it. Its "mouth" opened into a yellow-white row of dagger-sharp teeth, what I assumed must be a smile. "You are a bit… prettier than I had expected, though I shouldn't be surprised. Amaterasu was known for her beauty among us."

"It isn't every day that I get hit on by dead things," I said sarcastically.

It chuckled loudly, its tendrils wrapping around my thighs and snaking along the rest of my body. I cried out in both shock and pain, my body suddenly feeling intensely cold as if I had been submerged in ice water for several minutes. It threw itself upon me, leeching the warmth from my bones. Its body seemed to fold into itself, covering my body in a thin, obsidian membrane both icy cold and wet. As my heart seemed ready to freeze in my chest, the Shinigami detached itself from me. Releasing me, it sighed in delight, seeming to bask in my screams.

"Dead? How could I be dead if I was never alive? Humans are ever so bold. Queer human, we love the taste of pain… we love the taste of screams," it said, grinning again. "And you taste as good as the very first time you screamed, my Amaterasu."

"Does that get you off? Fuck off, freak," I gasped, my body beginning to slowly, painfully warm.

Again, it laughed. "You have become quite a bit more vulgar than I remember… Ah but I would have it no other way. You will be much more enjoyable in this form. You aren't even aware that you are the reincarnation of my beloved, do you, Alice?"

"Everyone keeps on telling me that," I replied dismissively. "I just learned to go with it. What do you want from me?"

"There are a lot of things I want, Amaterasu. I want to rule this world and use it to move on to other, more important realms. I want to use your powers to find the others like you, to create the ideal army with which to do so," it explained playfully, its tendrils coiling and uncoiling in a writhing cloud about its middle. "As for our motive: we Shinigami are tired of being treated like cattle by our 'god', and we will exact revenge upon the fool."

"The usual?" I scoffed. "You undead are all the same, you know. You really should get a different motive: one that sets you apart."

"My legacy will be much more than any has yet lain. Perhaps you weren't aware that nearly all of your famous serial killers and fascists became such thanks to us nonhumans. We are much more than you could handle, dear Amaterasu, even in your most powerful form."

I gritted my teeth, unable to argue. How could I? I didn't even know what kinds of power I had or how to access it. I couldn't even fight.

"I feel rather bored with you at the moment, my pet," he yawned. "Away with you." Kiiro gripped my arm and dragged me back to the room with convincing roughness. As he closed the door behind us, he relinquished me and returned to his place at the window.

"That went better than I expected," I said flatly, running my fingertips along the bedspread. Kiiro said nothing. "Do you think he was telling me the truth?"

"Perhaps."

"Why would he tell me his plans so easily? It makes no sense."

"Right now, you hardly pose a threat," he pointed out, his expressionless face disregarding my silent protest. "I doubt he expects you to find others like you, if they exist, before he does. Even if you did, I have doubts that they know anything about what they are. They are as clueless as you are, if not more." I winced as he said 'clueless'.

I sighed, overcome with it. As depressing a thought as it was, I didn't know shit about anything that I should. I didn't know what abilities I had or would gain, and I sure as hell didn't know how to defend myself. (May I bring up the box of tampons against the Aku working for the Shinigami?) All I had to defend myself with were a sharp tongue and really good friends.

"We should leave as soon as possible. We've learned everything that we can from the Shinigami. Get some rest," he commanded firmly, his gaze fixed on something in the distance. "I'll wake you when the others arrive."

I nodded and returned to the shitty bed. It seemed like mere minutes before Kiiro's brusque hand on my arm roused me from sleep. I turned to him and groaned groggily, touching his hand with my own before I could stop myself. As if burnt, he pulled his hand away immediately.

"The others are here. We should meet them on the roof," he said tensely, pulling his leather jacket tightly around his thin frame as he stared at the door. I nodded, sliding easily out of the uncomfortable bed, my feet touching the floor with a light thump. He led me up a flight of eerily-lit stairs and, pulling the heavy iron door open, led me onto the roof. Cool autumn air nipped at my face and uncovered arms. My spine tingled as the coldness spread throughout my body. I shivered in the night, looking around for Chino, Shinji, Tsurara, and Rei. Pools of darkness blotted out most of my vision, though parts of the roof were illuminated by the icy moon. Kiiro stood a ways behind me, silent as he usually was.

Struggling to ignore the uncomfortable cold, I stepped away from him a bit, taking in the outside. It was good to be out of that hospital… or at least, what used to be a hospital. I could not walk too far, or else I would be overwhelmed by the sheer height of the hospital and possibly vomit from anxiety. On the horizon, I could see a few skyscrapers: probably the Fresno nightlife. As I was thinking, Kiiro came up silently from behind me and draped his leather jacket over my shoulders, possibly to keep me warm. I looked at him, half in surprise, and half in embarrassment.

"W—What is this?"

"It's a jacket."

I rolled my eyes. "As if I didn't know that! I didn't need it… but thank you." He laughed and stepped ahead of me in his black man-tank top, basking in the moonlight as a reptile in the sun. His complexion paled to a pearly, lustrous white of someone that hadn't seen the sunlight in years.

"Were you now?" he asked lightly, a smile playing upon his smooth, porcelain lips. He turned back to me, and I noticed that he was uncomfortably close to the edge of the building. Though his eyes were hidden by his glasses, I knew he was looking at me from behind them. My heartbeat increased noticeably.

"Why are you smiling?" I asked in mock annoyance.

He just laughed, the sound seeming to come naturally from deep inside his chest. Before I could make a sarcastic comment which had been so conveniently waiting on my lips, he lost all playfulness and spoke. "They have arrived." I turned around to see them all before me.

They crowded around us, Shinji running to me and embracing me roughly, though not purposefully so. "I do apologize for the delay," Chino said professionally to Kiiro. "Did you learn anything? We can talk later if you think it more appropriate."

"That would be the wisest choice. Have you scouted the area?"

"There are no immediate threats outside of the facility. I can transport Alice," Rei said with a seriousness I had not thought natural for him.

"That will be fine, Rei," Chino replied before continuing with his plans. "We should split up and consider a rendezvous point as to evade capture. Let's meet at the usual place."

"Sounds good," the men all agreed.

"I really don't like the idea of splitting the group," I protested. "What if one of us gets captured? I couldn't bear to think of what the Shinigami might do to them."

"We can take care of ourselves," Chino assured me patiently. "Even a Shinigami will have trouble taking all of us down."

"Our little friend down there isn't too bright, but I'd say he's bright enough to take notice of four extra people just passing through his hospital. How are we supposed to get out of here without drawing attention to ourselves?" I asked.

"Detection itself doesn't matter so long as we are far enough away to evade capture or further recourse," Chino answered thoughtfully. "If we are within a few miles of the city limits before they realize we are gone, we should be fine. It is unlikely that they will enter Fresno. There are far too many who hunt them… among other obstacles."

Rei smiled serenely at me before leading me away from the group a bit. "Don't worry, we have done more dangerous things before, so can do it again," he promised me with a stunning smile. "You've only seen Chino's powers, but the rest of us have powers of our own, too… so now you get to see them, even if only a little." Staring at the group, I watched as they talked a bit longer. Shinji crushed Chino to his chest and extended strong, yet regal feathery wings, which seemed to dwarf his body. With one powerful kick, he launched off the roof and into the gray clouds, his soft outline mingling with the starry sky. Tsurara opened the door to the hospital and began descending the staircase, leaving Kiiro, Rei, and I on the roof.

Kiiro asked Rei for a moment with me. He nodded and walked quite a ways away. Behind his glasses, I could feel his gaze upon my face. "If this doesn't work out as planned..." He looked at his feet and then at me through his glasses. He looked ready to say something, but his face tensed and smoothed out before he settled on something different. "Don't come for us." I opened my mouth to protest, my whole body jerking at the thought of leaving them behind, but he put a finger to my lips and was gone. He was off the roof and down the stairs before the heavy door could even shut behind him. I took a moment to collect my thoughts before turning to Rei, who was staring at the door as if expecting him to be watching.

"Are you ready?" he asked. Grinning, he announced, "Please place your trays in the upright locked position and stow all carry-on luggage." I locked my jaw and watched painfully as his body shook violently and his joints popped out of place, rearranging into a completely new skeletal form, his skin flaking off and replacing itself with reptilian scales.

Within mere moments, Rei was no longer in front of me. Instead, a large, scaly beast was perched at the edge of the building. The only creature it could be said to resemble was a dragon or something similar. It had Rei's aura, even his eyes. It was Rei. I could hardly wrap my head around the concept. He lowered himself and used his wings to balance as he did so. I mounted his back, wrapping my arms around his sinewy neck muscles. "Giddyap," I called, causing his tail to swish back and forth in protest. Like Shinji had done, he pushed off strongly from the roof and sped into the air so quickly that it blew back my eyelashes and hair, the air whistling as we pierced the cold autumn air current.

I was too afraid that I would fall off to even attempt to pull Kiiro's jacket any tighter about me. Fear stilled my heart and tensed my muscles until my thighs and arms were burning with how tight I clung to Rei. The ground below, which flew past us faster than any car I had ever rode in, was tinted the same navy as all things were at night, except for the large tear-drop shaped shadow that sped across the countryside mirroring my steed. It was like riding a horse… a giant, scaly, flying horse. It was an experience that nothing else can compare to.

Perhaps Rei should invest in a seat belt, Chino commented wryly.

That might be for the best, I replied shakily. And maybe some "oh shit" handles.

Chino's laugh rung in my head and ears and I struggled not to smile. Though Rei was flying well above the ground, we were not so far that insects did not paste themselves unwillingly to my flesh now and then. After about twenty minutes, I noticed a pain on the inside of my thighs. I cautiously relaxed my grip a bit on his body and tried to rely mainly on my arms. Glancing back occasionally, Erina pulled his wings close to his sides and tried to fly more quickly. We hadn't been flying long, but the hospital was already far behind us.

As we neared the outskirts of Fresno, Rei landed, allowing me to dismount as he transformed back into his own form. I stared down at my pants, touching my thigh slightly. It was mostly numb, but a burning sensation was bothering me a little. The material was wet with blood, and I wasn't on my period. I cussed and limped a bit as I turned back to Rei.

I shouldn't have been surprised that he was naked. He hadn't taken his clothing off when his body had changed, so now he was left covering what little he could with his hands. He was not blushing, but a big, embarrassed grin spread across his face.

"Sorry!" he called, waving a hand, which, unfortunately, revealed parts of his body that I was not quite ready to see. "I forgot to bring clothes! Ha… haha…"

I turned away in embarrassment, begging Chino to bring the exhibitionist some clothes. It was now clear why he walked around comfortably wearing nothing or little to nothing at home. It would be more difficult for him to transform and it didn't make much sense to have to worry about something so trivial. Had I been expecting such a lovely show, I'd have brought along some bills smaller than twenties.

Shinji and Chino appeared soon enough, bearing gifts. Chino handed Rei some extra clothes and asked him to hurry and dress out of sight, noticing my bloody thighs. He didn't look surprised, merely worried.

"We will definitely have to have you travel with Shinji next time. We can't have you running around like that. We must go on to the hotel to meet Tsurara and Kiiro," Chino said, obviously discontent with having to do so. "I will carry you there. It is not that far." Ignoring my protests, he lifted me in his arms, cradling me like cute little couples did in the movies. "Please don't make this difficult, Alice. I know you don't want to walk with your legs the way they are."

"How do you know that? What if I do want to walk, huh? Are you saying I'm fat?"

Chino laughed. "Women! Human, vampire, mutant, Elf… they're all the same!"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

He just laughed again and playfully tossed me up about a foot or so, like he might with a young child. Was it pathetic that I enjoyed it? We arrived some time later at a decent hotel with a Japanese name. Chino, still carrying me, spoke to a woman at the front desk about checking in, explaining that Tsurara and Kiiro would be arriving soon and to give them the extra room key. She eyed me with what looked like envy, but also unease. Well, I couldn't blame her. Three metro-sexual guys (plus two more on the way) and one girl? Sounded like a party.

He proceeded to carry me into the elevator, which caused chills to run down my spine. Rei looked at me for a long moment, worry evident in his expression. He cradled me fully in one arm as his hand touched my forehead tentatively.

"You look kinda pale, Alice, are you okay? You're shaking," he added, his hand remaining on my brow as he checked my temperature.

"I'm fine," I replied after a long moment. I was glad that Chino was carrying me, or else I might have fainted. I swallowed. "I just… I hate elevators."

"Elevators?" he repeated as if he hadn't heard me right.

"Yeah, elevators." I closed my eyes and tried to pretend that I was elsewhere.

The doors to the elevator opened and Chino rushed to get me out of it. I felt a weight lift off my chest as we did so, the kind of relief that someone got after they almost died, but not quite. We arrived at the room and he put me on the bed gingerly, as one might gently place an expensive piece of art. His hands hovered near my shoulders, too, as if I would break at any moment.

"I'll be fine," I assured, pulling down my ruined pants to look at my damaged legs. Chino and Shinji turned away politely, but Rei just flipped on the TV and began watching WWE. He was either oblivious to me or he was clever enough to look like he wasn't looking at me.

The inner parts of my thighs were tender and red; the skin had broken in multiple places. It was like a really intense carpet burn. Blood trickled down my thighs and stained the carpet. I cursed and pulled my pants back up, making my way quickly toward the bathroom. I sat on the toilet for a moment, applying Neosporin to the open wounds.

"Does anyone have pants I can wear?" I asked, peering around the corner instead of fully exposing my nudity. Shinji tossed me some of his designer brand pants and I felt bad for ruining them, but we obviously didn't have many choices. After mopping up some blood with my old jeans, I tossed them, wrapped my legs, and put on Shinji's pants. I walked out stiffly wearing his pants, which were surprisingly a near-perfect fit for me. He winked and Rei whistled. I rolled my eyes at both of them and slowly made my way toward one of the beds.

"You should get in Shinji's pants more often!" Rei exclaimed with a huge grin. We all laughed. "No, really. You look good that way, Alice."

"Thanks," I replied, blushing. "Where are Kiiro and Tsurara?"

"They are on their way," Chino answered from in the kitchen portion of the hotel. "Don't worry. By the way, Rei is right; you do look pretty good in Shinji's pants."

"Shut up," I said with a laugh, sitting cross-legged on the couch. I watched TV with Rei for a while before the door opened, revealing Tsurara and Kiiro.

Kiiro's hair was a bit messy but still decent, and he pushed his glasses into their proper place. Tsurara sighed with exhaustion but as he looked upon me, the left corner of his mouth curved up almost imperceptibly. "Alice," Tsurara greeted. Kiiro lounged comfortably on one of the beds. Something about his posture was triumphant.

"Did you have any difficulties on the way here?" Chino asked.

"No," Kiiro answered. "The Shinigami was unwary, and his Aku were easily dispatched." He looked at me uneasily, his gaze heavy. "There is one thing though."

"What?" Chino asked, worried.

"On the way out, I picked up something of the Shinigami's," he said, digging in his pocket. "It was something personal, I think, but I don't know why it would be so easy to get. Anyway, it's for you, Alice." Withdrawing his hand from his pocket, he handed me a jade character. I took it hesitantly, unsure of what he meant. It was in the shape of the kanji for "companion".