Overnight, Destiny convinced herself that it wasn't Tanoshii's fault, however. After thinking about it for hours, realizing that, no matter how she looked at it, she always came up with the same conclusion; it was her fault.
The alarm clock rang at the appropriate time the next morning, much to Destiny's surprise. She went to work and made it on time. her 'on time' streak extended for another day. As soon as she sat down behind her desk, though, Tasashimi called her into his office.
"Morning, Yasashimi" she sighed, sitting heavily in the chair in front of her desk.
"You seem depressed, Migoto. Why?" Yasashimi asked, leaning on his elbows while staring at her curiously.
"Because I miss my partner! I feel so bad for leaving him alone and letting this happen!" she moaned, dropping forward and banging her forehead on the desk. "ouch..."
Yasashimi winced at the dull thud resulting. "Well, it was too early to say so on the news, but we're going to look today" he said.
Destiny straightened up, looking hopeful.
"But you're not coming" he added.
"Why not?!" she whined, sounding like a spoiled three-year-old.
"Because you're under a lot of stress and most likely wouldn't help the investigation" he said, matter-of-factly.
"Please?" she asked hopefully.
"No" Yasashimi said bluntly.
"Pleeeeeease?!" Destiny asked, batting her eyelashes and making puppy eyes at him.
He rolled his eyes, and sighed.
"Yipee!" Destiny giggled happily. Yasashimi caved in to her, and she was cruising along in the back seat of a patrol car. Unfortunately, Yasashimi wasn't about to let her help, but he didn't trust her with staying behind. So she was handcuffed.
"What're you so happy about? You're not helping" Yasashimi said, smiling slightly.
"I know. Just the fact that I convinced you to let me come so easily" she smirked, attempting to cross her arms but failing.
Yasashimi turned his attention back to the streets, and both were silent for a moment. "So...where were you guys?" he asked, changing the subject.
"We were near the section...oh, where are all the coffee shops?" she said, thinking about it, "though it doesn't help much, because he could be anywhere in Tokyo by now"
"That's a change we're willing to take" Yasashimi said.
"Willing? You're willing to sacrifice your best officer on accounts that; if he's not in this area you're just going to close the case and move on?!" Destiny shrieked, throwing her hands up.
Yasashimi sighed, rolling his eyes, "No, that's not what I'm saying. I mean; we have to start here"
"Good. 'Cause if it was, I'd have to hurt you" Destiny said, staring at him sourly.
Yasashimi concentrated on driving, though he didn't need to as the road pretty much drives for the people in the vehicle; since petroleum based fuel was no longer an option, transportation around the world basically revolved around two power sources; water and magnetism. The streets in Tokyo were entirely magnetic. Like the bullet trains of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, the vehicles of the fortieth century were completely magnetic. The only way to cause a crash was to forget to stop at an intersection, or stop without warning and have somebody run into you from behind. Though that type of accident was decreasing, as automotive producers were engineering ways to prevent any moving vehicle from running into a stopped one.
Stopping in the section of Little Universe where Destiny had last seen Tanoshii, the police force's best officers waited for instructions from the Lieutenant.
"So, exactly where were you two?" Yasashimi asked Destiny, as she looked around.
"I don't remember exactly...at first I was tired and then I was...wired...I don't really remember anything from yesterday" she said airily.
Yasashimi slapped his forehead, turning to the other officers. "You know the drill; search the whole area. Leave no shop, alley, or building unsearched"
The officers moved out, but Destiny stood her ground, staring around with wide eyes. "What do I do? He didn't tell me to do anything, did he?" she thought nervously, biting her lip.
Yasashimi turned to her and sighed, "That meant you too, Migoto" he said.
"Oh...oh! heheh, gotcha!" she said, smiling embarrassedly before scurrying away.
"Weird kid..." Yasashimi muttered, walking away as well.
Standing in the middle of a dark alley, Destiny tried to project the image of someone who was relaxed, in tune with her surroundings. In reality, she was shaking in her steel-toed boots.
"Everyone knows I hate dark and dangerous places! Stupid Lieutenant! He should've assigned me a partner!" she muttered, "But, that would make it all the more obvious that I'm just the rookie and I need help"
She took a deep breath, and stepped forward. "I can do this" she said, still a little shaky. Hearing a noise from behind her she spun around, to find no one there. "Heheh, just a...a dog...or something...nothing to be worried about" she giggled nervously, walking a little faster. "See? I'm not a baby! I can do this!" she said loudly, her confidence building steadily.
She stopped, staring at the ground, when a little chip of pavement flew up. Then the bang; it had been a gunshot that just missed her. Every trace of her confidence evaporated, and she ran as fast as she could out of the alley.
"Oh...man..." she panted, leaning against a wall to catch her breath. "I am so lame" she moaned, closing her eyes and putting her hand against her forehead.
She quickly caught her breath, and cautiously peered into the alley. "He-llo?" she called nervously, squinting into the darkness. She could see no one, and was slightly confused. "Where did that shot come from? Who is shooting at me? And why?" she asked herself, looking thoughtful. The answer came to her almost instantly. "Maybe the same people who got Tanoshii want me, too. What if they want me dead? What if they've already killed him?" she thought, her eyes widening.
Running as fast as she could manage, Destiny found Lieutenant Yasashimi just a few blocks away.
"Ya...sashimi...I...thought...of something" she panted, trying not to fall over.
"Thought of something? Alright, let's hear it' he said.
She coughed, straightening up, "Well, I was walking down this dark, spooky alley and somebody shot at me. So I ran for it. But then I thought about who would want me dead. And I thought that it might be the same people who got Tanoshii" she explained.
"Somebody shot at you? Migoto, this is serious. You're done for today" he said, cuffing her wrist to his and leading her back to the cruiser they came in.
"But Yasashimi! I want to help! If I can't help then...then I won't feel as good about it if he is found!" she said, sighing.
"Too bad. If he's found today you'll be the first person notified. But go home no, and relax. In the morning, if we haven't found him, I'm assigning you a new partner" Yasashimi said, uncuffing her wrist and pushing her into the car.
"But-!" she protested, attempting to get back out.
"That wasn't a request, Migoto. That was an order" he said, frowning.
"Fine..." she muttered, slamming the door.
*
Tanoshii sat, closely guarded by Zola. Having been in the same room all day, he was begining to notice things most people don't see. Like the fact that the crack in the wall took on the shape of a star if you turned your head to a specific angle.
"Zolaaaaa...!|" Tanoshii moaned, banging his head on the chair he was sitting on.
"Vhat do you vant, captive boy?" she asked, looking up from her book.
"I'm boooored!" he said, his eye twitching.
"Captives are not to be amused. Zhat vould take the fun out of holding you captive" she smirked.
There was a knock at the door and she opened it, to find an out of breath soldier wearing the same white uniform she had on. "Zola...! I missed!" he said, falling to the floor, out of breath.
"Missed?" Tanoshii asked, straightening up.
"None of your buisness, captive boy" Zola said, frowning at him before turning back to the soldier. "Vhat did you do to miss? Vas zhe target not obvious?" she asked, still frowning.
"No, I projected the tragectory perfectly... except she stopped" he said.
"She? She who?!" Tanoshii asked, now anxious to know.
Zola dismissed the soldier, and closed the door with a loud click. She smiled wickedly, turning to Tanoshii. "Do you vant to know, captive you? I zhink not. It vould break your heart" she said.
"Try me. I'm stronger than I look" he said, smiling pleasantly.
"Ve 'ave been instructed to find anyone vith information on Abunai and kill zhem. And guess vat?" she said.
"What?" he asked curiously.
"Your precious Destiny police girl 'as information. If ve cannot kill her instantly zhen ve vill use you to bring her to us. And vhen ve get her, ve vill kill her" Zola explained.
"You'll kill her?! But what about me?! Don't kill Destiny, please!" he said, his eyes wide.
"Ve 'ave to kill her. Anyone vith any information, no matter how insignificant it seems must be killed. Zhat includes you, captive boy. If ve cannot kill her instantly, and lure her here, ve vill kill you after ve have taken care of her. And if she is killed by sniper or assassin, zhen you shall be killed right avay" she explained.
Tanoshii's eyes welled up, as he realized his inevitable fate.
Suddenly, the door burst open, and Zola whipped around to face several more soldiers, looking positively horrified. "Vhat is it?" she asked.
"They've got us! The police are in the neighbourhood; they're searching EVERY building!" one of them said nervously.
"VHAT?! quickly, get him out of 'ere! Ve need to move!" she said, pointing to Tanoshii.
*
Destiny went back to work the next morning, after having stared at the phone all night. She wandered into Yasashimi's office, as he called her there the moment she walked in the door.
"Migoto, we're assigning you a new partner until we can figure out where Tanoshii is and get him back safely" the Lieutenant explained, as she sat down heavily.
"Whatever" she sighed, rolling her eyes boredly.
Yasashimi blinked, then leaned towards her. "Okay, what's wrong? Usually, you'd just protest this kind of thing and then regret it later" he said, frowning slightly.
"I'm just unhappy" she muttered, trying her best not to make eye contact with him.
"You? Unhappy? Preposterous!" he said incredulously.
"Nope. I'm not happy. It's my fault that Tanoshii is missing and I feel bad for letting him down" she said sadly.
"Oh, forget about it. I have to get you and Colfer introduced and on the job" Yasashimi said, changing the subject.
"Colfer?" Destiny asked, looking up.
"Yes, Colfer. Annelise Colfer. She's new on the force, but she's very good" he said, opening the door.
"She?" Destiny thought, turning over her shoulder. Destiny came face to face, literally, with her new partner.
"Hiyah!" Annelise said cheerfully, waving at Destiny.
"Wah!" Destiny fell backwards off her chair in surprise.
"Oh, I'm sorry! Are you okay?" Annelise asked, looking down at her. Destiny got a good look at her new partner, taking in every detail. She had long, black hair, neetly done up in a braid, and deep blue eyes. Her pleasant natured aura made her dark skin glow. she offered Destiny her hand, and Destiny took it, pulling herself up.
"I suppose I should make a better inpression of myself. My name is Annelise Colfer, I'm new on the job, and I'm your new partner! Isn't that super?" Annelise said, grinning.
"I suppose" Destiny said, smiling a little. This girl's cheerful attitude was starting to transmit to her.
"Glad to see you're getting along. Now, since neither of you have much experience, we're just putting you on patrol today. No searching" Yasashimi said.
"Well, that's alright" Annelise said airily, shrugging.
"No it's not!" Destiny said loudly, turning on her superior, "Tanoshii's MY partner, I should be helping you look for him!"
"No can do. Annelise there isn't even qualified yet to carry a weapon" he said, shaking his head.
Destiny frowned at Annelise, who smiled guiltily. "I hate you" Destiny mouthed, in her direction.
"That's not nice!" Annelise silently replied, still smiling.
Destiny growled.
Walking along the streets downtown, Destiny kept as far away from Annelise as she could. "Destiny! Wait up!" Annelise called, struggling to make her way through the crowd.
Destiny could tell she wasn't from Tokyo. No foreigner could survive long in the crowded streets. "I don't have to" Destiny muttered, keeping her gaze straight ahead.
Annelise finally battled her way past the masses, catching up to Destiny. "You need to slow down! I was having a hard time keeping up with you!" she said, giggling.
Destiny turned her head slightly, glaring at Annelise. "You know what would've been a better job for you, Annie? Pre-school teacher!" Destiny said irritatedly, starting to walk faster.
Annelise looked hurt for a moment, but decided not to let it affect her and continued to smile. "Oh well. I chose this one and I like it" she said cheerfully.
Destiny rolled her eyes, not paying much attention to her. Not paying much attention to anything, for that matter.
"Where're you going?" Annelise asked, out of the blue.
Destiny looked up, and noticed she was in a dead-end alleyway. "Damn it!" she said, kicking a rock at the end wall.
"You should pay more attention, Destiny. You could get lost" Annelise said, running up behind Destiny.
"I know" Destiny muttered, slapping her own forehead. The ressounding echo of the slap bounced off the walls in the alley, as Destiny and Annelise realized that everything had gotten incredibly silent.
"Uh oh..." Destiny muttered, drawing her laser. "Don't be scared, newby" she said, flicking the settings.
"I'm not scared" Annelise said.
Out of nowhere, several enemy soldiers sprung up. Destiny aimed at one, only to have her laser knocked out of her hands.
"What...?!" she said, surprised. She was pushed down, held down by one of the soldiers.
"Ah! Destiny, look out!" Annelise said, from somewhere above her.
"What?" Destiny asked, looking around.
Annelise knocked the soldier off Destiny with one kick, sending him flying into the wall. "Are you alright?" she asked, holding her hand out to Destiny.
"I'm fine..." Destiny said, taking her hand and pulling herself up.
"Great! Lemme take care of these guys" Annelise said, quickly incapacitating all the soldiers; knocking each one out with a sharp jab to the nerves at the base of the neck.
"Wow...that is so cool!" Destiny grinned.
"Aw, it's nothing..." Annelise said, blushing slightly.
"Oh, but it is! Without you I'd be dead now, or kidnapped!" Destiny said, still smiling brightly.
Annelise and Destiny escorted the enemy soldiers back to HQ, to recieve a standing ovation from all those officers stuck on desk duty.
"Six is pretty good, girls. Especially for your first day, Colfer" Yasashimi commented.
"Six?" Destiny said quietly, raising her eyebrows.
Annelise noticed, and looked at her partner questioningly. "What's the matter, Destiny?" she asked curiously.
"I thought there were seven..." Destiny said, frowning slightly.
The long, empty hallways of a long forgotten building on the outskirts of the city echoed with the running footsteps of a young soldier. A trail of blood marked where he had been, as he had tried to keep the deep gash on his arm from bleeding but failed. He stopped in front of a black door, pausing to catch his breath. Before he coulc knock, the door opened.
"Vhy are you bleeding, Vakai?" Zola asked, staring at him with a single eyebrow raised.
Wakai took a deep breath, steadying himself. "We went after her...just half an hour or so ago..." he began, wiping his bloodied hands on his uniform.
"Her? Her who? Who's her?" a curious voice asked from behind Zola.
Wakai attempted to look over her shoulder, but stopped as she glared at him. "None of your buisness, captive boy!" she called over her shoulder. She turned back to Wakai, and waited for him to finish his explination.
"And...apparently she has a new partner...who is a very good fighter. I just barely got away" he finished explaining.
"Destiny has a new partner?! But what about me?!" Tanoshii whined, still listening.
"Quiet, captive boy!" Zola said annoyedly, frowning at him.
He instantly closed his mouth, feeling as though someone had hit him hard. "How could she get a new partner so soon? Has she forgotten about me?" he thought, biting his liip.
"Vakai, get yourself cleaned up. And next time, try to stay out of sight" Zola said, pushing Wakai away from the door and closing it. She turned on Tanoshii, and smirked. "Are you sad, captive boy? Sad zhat our little friend 'as already forgotten you?" she asked, pretending to be saddened.
Tanoshii sighed, looking away. "To tell you the truth, Zola, I am sad. Sad that my partner of...approcimately a year could just so easily toss me aside..." he said sadly, blinking back tears.
Zola looked surprised, "So you are sad, zhen. Vell, I don't like sad. So I vill be leaving now" she said, walking out.
"Bye, Zola" Tanoshii said quietly.
