Chapter Three

by Kira Seldon

The white cat fairly flew into D's tea room, tail waving in great enthusiasm. Subaru stumbled in after it, panting. It was amazing how fast cats could run. And he hadn't dared lose sight of her because he was well aware that, without a guide, he could wander around in the corridors of the pet shop for ages.

He stopped, and blinked at the sight before him. D was setting out a large fruit tart, beaming with joy, while his batlike pet dive-bombed him in search of handouts. Sprawled on the couch, tolerant amusement written all over his face, was the ponytailed man from the mall.

The cat, ignoring all else, dived for the tart and stuck her nose into it. Bits of glaze stuck to her whiskers.

"Hey!" protested the visitor, leaning over and snatching the cat out of the pie. "That's not good for you! Besides, it was expensive."

The cat, hanging from his hands, pouted at him.

He laughed, and set her down. She immediately jumped into his lap and started purring in an obvious bid for attention.

D looked up and noticed Subaru, who was hanging uncertainly back near the door. "Come in!" he invited in Japanese.

Subaru shrugged, and took one of the well-stuffed armchairs.

"I saw you in the mall!" the ponytailed man said, in English.

Subaru blinked at him.

D translated, and added, "This is Subaru-san, Detective. Subaru-san," he said, switching to Japanese, "this is Detective Leon Orcot."

"Hajimemashite," Subaru murmured, with the closest approximation of a polite bow that he could manage while sunken in the depths of the chair.

"Nice to meetcha," Leon said, offering his hand. The cat leapt from his lap to the table and headed directly for the tart. D gave her a quelling look, then cut a slice of the tart, put it on a plate, and set the plate on the edge of the table. The cat promptly buried her face in the cream cheese filling, tail waving ecstatically.

Subaru muffled a laugh. Leon looked over at the table, and grinned.

"Cute cat," he commented. The cat preened. D translated for Subaru.

The bat-thing swooped down on the cat's plate and grabbed one of the preserved fruits. With a hiss, the cat pounced on its tail and planted both forefeet firmly. Queeping frantically, the bat-thing tried to tug its tail free. The cat meowed at it, and the bat-thing, quieting a little, queeped in response.

After an intense conversation, the bat-thing dragged off the preserved fruit and the cat settled down to finish off the cream cheese filling.

Leon and Subaru were laughing, and even D looked amused. The cat ignored all of them.

As his two guests calmed down, D passed out slices of the tart and cups of tea.

"So, Detective, why are you here today? I don't recall selling anything dangerous recently. . ."

Leon shrugged. "Really? Well," he said, taking a sheaf of Polaroids out of his jeans pocket, "the chief dumped these on me when I got back from lunch. He said it looked like, quote, 'something you'd be interested in.'"

Although Subaru hadn't understood a word of the conversation so far, he leaned forward to look at the pictures. They were crime-scene shots, showing a home that was literally torn to pieces. Splinters of furniture and chunks of plaster strewed the hacked carpet, and sparking

wires spilled out of the torn walls. There was nothing left intact.

Subaru frowned. It looked familiar. Something about the pattern of damage. . .

"I'm sorry, Detective, I don't know what did this," D said, straightening up.

"Come on," Leon said, looking absolutely astounded. "There weren't any fingerprints on anything, no marks of any weapon. Nothing human did it!"

D smiled and serenely sipped his tea. "Despite what you believe, Detective, I am not behind *every* supernatural event in the city."

Leon flopped back on the couch with a sigh. "Well, then I'm stumped! C'mon, don't you have *any* guesses? The family that lives there's missing. If they're still alive and whatever did *that* has 'em, it could kill them if we don't find it fast."

"Angry ghost?" Subaru murmured to himself, frowning as he picked up one of the pictures. He'd

completely tuned out the incomprehensible conversation. One fingertip traced the broken edge of the wall. The edge was crumbled as if someone had torn huge chunks from the plaster with their bare hands.

D stared at him. "Subaru-san, do you know what did this?"

"I think I recognize it," Subaru frowned. "I'd have to see the place firsthand to be sure, though."

"Can somebody translate for me?" Leon complained.

D repeated what Subaru had said in English.

"Huh. All right," Leon said, standing up. "I can show you the place. It's pretty well wrecked, though."

Subaru looked to D for a translation, feeling very helpless.

Rather than repeating Leon's speech, D whistled loudly. Both humans jumped. The cat fell off the table with a yowl of surprise.

The cat had just clambered back on the table, fur fluffed up, when a large bird swooped in through the door and landed on D's outstretched wrist. It was brilliantly colored, the folded wings and head iridescing blue and green in the soft lights. Its chest was bright scarlet, the large bill golden tipped with black. It looked like a parrot with several hummingbirds in the family tree.

D murmured to the parrot for a moment, everyone in the room staring at him, and then stretched his hand out towards Subaru. "Here," he said. "This bird can translate for you. I can't come, I need to take care of the animals."

Subaru winced, embarrassed. He'd been hired to take care of D's animals, and here he was going off to look at some ruined house to see whether an angry spirit had destroyed it.

The cat yowled at him.

"Subaru, don't start feeling guilty!!" the parrot translated.

Both Subaru and D stared at the parrot. Leon, left out, crossed his arms and leaned on the wall.

"Did it just translate for the *cat*?" Subaru asked weakly.

D nodded.

Subaru shook his head, ignoring the distant thought that the cat's comment sounded very familiar, and asked, "Can it translate what *I* say?"

"Of course," D said.

Subaru looked at the parrot. "Very useful."

It looked proud.

"Well?" Leon said impatiently. "Are you going to come look at the place or not?"

As soon as the parrot finished translating, Subaru nodded. "Yes, Orcot- san."

The parrot rendered the comment in English. Leon stared at it, then shook his head.

"At least this one's harmless. . ."

Subaru didn't understand that comment any better in Japanese. D just smiled mysteriously.

"Well, come on," Leon said. "It's getting late. I don't want to wander around in that wreck after dark, I'll break my neck."

* * *

The place reeked of hatred.

That was the first thing Subaru felt as he stepped out of the battered undercover vehicle. He leaned back against the side of the car, green eyes slipping closed as he steeled himself against the waves of fury.

"Hey, you all right?" Leon asked, alarmed.

Subaru nodded, opening his eyes and looking at the house.

The shadows of dusk fell heavily across the battered building. Yellow police tape flapped in the breeze. Even this far away, the damage was evident. Chunks of concrete, rent whole

from the sidewalk, lay around the yard. A palm tree, snapped in half like a careless giant's toy, trailed a wilted feather duster of leaves over the cracked wall.

And over everything, like a vandal's red paint, was the stain of anger and hate.

Subaru had to force himself to walk closer to the wreck. Even Leon seemed to sense something; he trailed a few paces behind, looking around nervously.

The breeze died slowly down as Subaru walked closer. The police tape snapped as if it had become a hurricane.

That was the only warning that Subaru had before the place rose in an inchoate storm of destruction.

"What the hell?!" Leon yelled, trying to retreat. The parrot flapped its wings frantically to keep its perch on Subaru's shoulder as Subaru frantically flung out ofuda and activated them. The shield barely coalesced in time to stop the missile.

Fury beat insubstantially on them as the yard erupted. The broken palm tree lashed across the yard like a snake, striking the shield and recoiling time after time. Leon gave a yell of shock as a splintered two-by-four flew at the shield like a spear and rebounded from the thin air five inches from his chest.

Ignoring the detective, Subaru focused on keeping his shield up. He yelled into the tornado, "Stop it! Stop now!" His voice carried preternatural authority.

A face began to form out of the dust-filled wind. Empty eyes streamed indistinct tears, and the dark hole of the mouth gaped open in agony and anger.

~Die!~ the ghost screamed at them. ~Suffer! Suffer as I do!~

An ornamental boulder uprooted itself and battered the shield. The palm tree snapped around again to press against the other side, searching for a weak spot. Subaru gritted his teeth, and yelled into the wind again.

"Why do you suffer?" If he could just get it *talking*, instead of trying to kill them. . .

The ghost didn't answer. If anything, its efforts increased in violence. Even the brief shadow of form was beginning to dissolve again into the shapeless storm.

Subaru sliced out with one hand, sending a wave of power towards the ghost. The shock knocked it backwards, and the storm briefly stilled. In shocked reaction to the attack, a body began to form again. The rocks rose as it turned a hollow, tear- streaked face towards them.

Hatred, again. Implacable anger towards those who dared to come here, living and happy. Subaru staggered under the crushing strength of the ghost's anger, and the shield thinned. The ornamental boulder rose once more as he tried to rally, and arrowed viciously towards his head. His green eyes went wide.

"Watch out!" Leon yelled, and the detective hit Subaru from the side in a flying tackle. The parrot squawked and flapped away in a panic. Subaru could feel the fine silk of his borrowed clothing rip along one seam as he hit the debris-strewn ground. The boulder swished harmlessly through space overhead.

And returned for another pass. "*Move*!" Subaru snarled, and shoved Leon out of the way barely in time to deflect the boulder.

"Some gratitude," Leon muttered, looking at the storm around them as he clambered to his feet.

The ghost raised its arms, and the broken-backed palm tree lurched up from the ground. Green eyes narrowed, and Subaru whipped out an ofuda. A whirl of flame consumed the tree. The ghost retreated a step. It was beginning to solidify a little, and the form of a young woman flickered and flowed on the dry air. The empty sockets of eyes turned towards them.

It was still, confused, for a moment. Subaru snapped another set of ofuda at the ghost, and began to chant. Trapped within the barrier he erected, the woman's form writhed, hands to her head.

~Nooooo!~ she howled silently, wind and debris whipping viciously around the inside of the barrier, helpless to escape.

The chant ended. Subaru stepped forward, face hard and cold as glacier ice.

"Who are you?' he asked the furious ghost. The bird translated for Leon's benefit from its new perch on the wall.

The winds stilled, and a human face looked at him. ~Sarah Redding. . . Who are *you*?~

"Subaru," he responded. The ghost looked around, frowning in confusion.

~And him?~

"Detective Leon Orcot-san," Subaru told her. She nodded. Her body had finished coalescing into a smoked-glass sculpture, perfect in every detail. Sarah Redding had been a beautiful woman, in the mold of a model: hair, shirt and skirt all stylishly short. The shade of her hair, skin and eyes was rendered irrelevant by the ghost's universal misty white color.

Sarah stared at the ofuda that surrounded her. ~Why can't I move?~

Warily, Subaru dropped the shield, and the ofuda fell to the ground as harmless slips of paper. She took a hesitant step forward, then turned to look at the house.

~I know this place. I remember. . . it was. . . his house?~

"Can someone tell me what's going on?" Leon asked plaintively.

Subaru spared him a glance. "I'm talking to the ghost."

The detective shook his head. "Okay.Whatever. Ask it where the family that lived here went."

A good idea. Subaru turned back to Sarah, who was trailing her hand over the holes in the stuccoed wall. "Where are the people who lived here?"

~I did this?~ she murmured to herself, hand stilling on the stucco. ~I don't remember.~

"Please?" Subaru said. "It's important."

~I was angry. . . because. . . they were happy? And I wasn't? I think they ran for their lives,~ Sarah sighed, turning back to him. ~It's all foggy. I don't remember very well. They took their car.~

"They drove away," Subaru said to Leon.

"And were too scared to say anything? Makes sense, I guess. I'd be panicking if something like this happened to my apartment."

Subaru turned back to the ghost, who became more visible every moment as the sun sank behind the glassy skyscrapers. "Sarah-san, why are you unhappy?"

~You had to ask that question,~ she sighed. Her smile faded as she stared at the wrecked house. ~Mostly because I'm dead,~ she admitted. ~He killed me.~

Subaru frowned. Perhaps the detective should be listening to this story. "One moment, please, Sarah-san," he said, and waved at the parrot. It flapped heavily over and settled on his shoulder. "Please translate what she says for Orcot-san," he said to the bird.

"Hai," the bird said.

"Go on, Sarah-san."

~He killed me,~ Sarah repeated. ~I was a good actress, but I wasn't a star. I had small parts in big movies, or larger parts in small ones. Nothing memorable. No one noticed me. But then my chance came, a big part in a big movie. It was perfect for me! I knew it, my agent knew it. . . I would've done anything for that part. I even slept with the director, but it didn't work. They had a big star they wanted, and so they got her.~ She wiped a foggy tear from her cheek. ~It was supposed to be my chance, my breakthrough! After they told me, I didn't know what to do. . . I went home, I had a stash of some good stuff and I took some to cheer myself up. Then I decided to go chew out the director— that bastard who cheated me out of my chance to be big. I went. . .~ Suddenly she frowned, and looked around again. ~I came here! But he was talking to someone, I didn't see either of them, I came running up and. . . and he turned around and he shot me.~ Her hand came up to cover the center of her chest. ~I don't remember much else. Just being angry. He cheated me out of every chance I would ever have.~

"But you can't be angry about it forever," Subaru pointed out.

A smile flitted across Sarah's face. ~Want to bet? I don't plan on forgiving the bastard.~

"You remember his name?" Leon asked, scribbling on a dog-eared pad. Subaru relayed the question.

~David Wilcox,~ Sarah replied, frowning. ~What're you doing?~

"I'm going to check up on it," Leon shrugged. "I haven't heard anything about a murder case from this area. It might've been before my time."

~A murder case? Me?~ Sarah frowned. ~Dave lived here for a long time after I died. I think.~

"Well, I'll see," Leon said, and slipped the pad back into his jeans pocket. "Guy like that, probably involved in drugs and all sorts of shit. Even if he didn't land in jail over something else, he'd probably have gotten shot by now. Do you know how long ago this was. . .?"

~The year I died was 1964.~

"Damn. Way before my time. I'll check for you."

Sarah nodded, and looked around at the house. ~Tell the people who lived here I'm sorry. I didn't mean to destroy their home.~

"Yeah, sure," Leon replied after the parrot repeated Sarah's request.

Sarah sighed, and turned her misty face up towards the darkening sky. ~What year is it now?~

"1999," Subaru replied.

She shook her head. ~It's been too long. Thanks for the wake-up call, and can you help me catch the bus out of here?~

"Of course," Subaru said, almost smiling.

~Thanks. Hey, take care,~ she called as Subaru began chanting the exorcism. She looked over at Leon, and her smile flashed out again like a slice of sunlight. ~Hey, Detective, if that bastard is still alive throw the book at him!~

"Will do," Leon grinned.

And Sarah streamed into nothing on the evening breeze.

The two men stood in silence for a while as the stars struggled to shine through the LA smog. Finally, Leon sighed.

"Man, if I hadn't known D for so long, I wouldn't believe what I just saw. Did you really throw fire at her?"

"Yes," Subaru said. He transferred the parrot to his wrist, and started walking back to Leon's car. The wrecked cheongsam fluttered around his legs. He doubted that the Count would be pleased to see the ruin of his borrowed clothes.

"Geez," Leon said, shaking his head, and unlocked the car. "Ghosts, magic. . . Y'know, just as I get used to one weird thing, something else comes along."

Subaru nodded absently and climbed into the passenger seat. The bird settled on one knee, talons digging into the dusty silk.

"You seem pretty used to it, though," Leon said, and started the car. The engine coughed, choked, sputtered and finally settled down into a rhythm rather like a busy night on the emphysema ward. "Damn car," he muttered. "You'd think they'd get us something that wouldn't fall apart in the middle of the street at speeds over sixty. Do you do stuff like that *often*?" he asked, glancing over at Subaru.

"It's my job," Subaru said.

"Seriously? I wouldn't think enough people believed in that stuff to make for a job. They sure don't here."

"The family who lived in that house probably believe in ghosts," Subaru said.

"Good point." The car sputtered to a stop at a red light, and Leon glanced over at Subaru's unemotional expression. "Sounds like a dangerous job, if you get called in for stuff like that. Is that what happened to your eye?"

Subaru flinched, and looked away. The neon of the city reflected in both unseeing eyes, green and white. "No," he said shortly.

"Sorry, didn't mean to pry," Leon shrugged.

"It's all right," Subaru said quietly. "But please don't mention my eye." The memories were still vivid, but overlaid now with the bitter realization that the whole grand tragedy was over. It was easier, if he wanted to make some kind of a life here, just not to think about any of it. It was past. It was gone. There had never been any such person as Seishirou-san.

Leon, watching the road, didn't notice the crystalline tear slide silently down Subaru's cheek.