Promise to Sirius (An Utapri / Uta no Prince-sama Fanfiction)

Chapter 6: A Dark Demeanor

Ai Mikaze

"Nattsun, you look like you're spacing out."

"H-Huh?"

Ai quietly observed as a dazed Natsuki blinked a few times and Reiji slung an arm around him, the latter's grey eyes filled with worry.

"What's going on in your head?"

"Um..." Natsuki lowered his eyes and Reiji held him even tighter. "I... I heard Ozrock-san's voice inside my head again, and I tried to push it away, tried to focus on your voices, Rei-chan-senpai, Ai-chan. But... he just keeps getting louder, laughing at me even more, calling me names that hurt to even say."

The blond boy's hands quivered around his mug of tea.

"I just... want him to stop..." Natsuki whispered, his voice faltering slightly.

"Nattsun..."

Ai lowered his eyes as Reiji gave Natsuki's shoulder a tight squeeze, anguish twisting through his chest as the former looked down with sheer agony in his grey eyes. Reiji had told Ai, Ranmaru and Camus about Tablo Ozrock and what he had done to Natsuki last night, sending the perpetrator's picture and profile to the groupchat with a detailed message about him. Ai had been on the way home from his meeting with Shining Saotome when Ranmaru abruptly decided that all of them were to congregate in Reiji's apartment to discuss about "beating that trash senseless." Ai had originally wanted to inquire why they could not discuss it in the groupchat, but before he could, Camus and Reiji agreed and Ai knew that he had no option but to go along with Ranmaru's dreadful sense of timing and told the van driver to change routes. However, at the end, Ai did not mind.

After all, Natsuki was more important than his band members' absurd timing.

"So this is the trash who broke Natsuki?"

"Tablo Ozrock," Ai said, scrolling through the details on his phone screen as he stood near Reiji. "A 28-year-old cameraman for hire. He has been involved in a number of criminal activities, including assault, blackmail and the alleged harassing of teenage idols, although he used his money and connections to walk away from every charge."

"Tch, what a lowlife."

Ranmaru spat a curse as his heterochromatic eyes blazed at the picture of Ozrock in his cellphone.

"He even already looks like total garbage to me."

"Such scum..." Camus remarked, his voice as cold as ice.

Ranmaru faced Camus. "For once in my life, I actually agree with you about something outside of showbiz, Camus."

"Well, perhaps that is because we can both perfectly see the absence of worth in this scum simply by looking at him and being given the details of his actions," Camus responded, sipping his tea.

"Oi, Reiji," Ranmaru swivelled around to face Reiji, who had been silently sitting on a wooden chair with a mug of green tea in his hands, "when do we get to beat this piece of trash?"

"Saturday."

Ai's eyes dilated at the dark tone and cold underlying meaning in Reiji's reply. Reiji was usually the mediator along with Ai when it came to arguments, quarrels and threats within the quartet. In a normal situation, Reiji would be telling Ranmaru to calm down and that no one was going to attack or beat up anyone, even bribing the latter with his cooking if he still refused to calm down. However, this time, Reiji was not making any obvious attempt to stop him. Instead, he seemed to be willing to let Ranmaru hurt Ozrock. Ai could hear Ranmaru and Camus gasp as Reiji's hands tightened around his olive mug, the latter's eyes devoid of any of his usual cheer. Yet if Reiji noticed any of their shocked reactions, he paid them no heed.