Chapter II

Chapter II

 

My name is Taniguchi Masaki. I became a high school student this past April, and about a month ago, I began imitating—okay, maybe just cosplaying as—the legendary Boogiepop.

It was the first time I’d ever fallen in love with a girl, so I got carried away and did whatever Orihata Aya told me—even if that meant dressing all in black like some sort of shinigami and walking around acting like a superhero. What’s crazy is that I still have no idea why she wanted me to do all this.

But every time she called me, I’d come running. I made fun of myself awhile for it, but just being with Orihata was the best time I’d ever had.

Then, early one Sunday, as I was tying the laces on my sneakers and getting ready to leave, my sister popped up behind me.

“Hey, Masaki…”

“What, Nagi?” I said, not turning around.

“You’ve been out of the house a lot lately.”

“Have I?”

“And back late, too. What’s going on?”

My sister always sounds a little harsh, but she’s fundamentally a nice person.

“You’re out all night too, Oneechan,” I said, smiling.

But this time she wasn’t letting me get out of it that easily. “Same thing, every time?”

“Same what?”

“You don’t look like you’re off to meet a girl. Your clothes aren’t nice enough. You used to dress better.”

“………”

I was wearing a pretty shabby T-shirt, a pair of 3,000 yen jeans, and a cheap windbreaker. I’d be disguised as Boogiepop anyway, so I hadn’t put a lot of thought into it.

“Where are you going?” she asked, leaning forward and peering into my eyes.

Less peering than glaring.

“N-nowhere special,” I said, feeling a bead of sweat roll down my neck. This was not how my sister usually acted. She was a lot more intense today.

Nagi grabbed my hand. It was so sudden that it startled me.

“Wh-what?” I stuttered.

“Nice calluses,” she said, stroking the back of my hand. “You practicing karate?”

“Um, y-yeah. A little. I’d been slacking off for a while, so…” I stammered to a stop.

“You’re pretty strong,” she said, like she was accusing me of something.

“Oh, not really…”

“Sakakibara-sensei warned you about the danger of being strong, yeah? Get cocky, and you’ll get creamed.”

Sakakibara-sensei was my karate shishou, and an old friend of Nagi’s deceased father.

“Yeah, I remember. He said that so many times I still hear it in my sleep.”

“But do you really understand it?” She moved her face right up against mine. My sister’s a beautiful girl, and we aren’t actually related, so when those red lips came towards me… But the atmosphere around us was about as unerotic as you could get. The air was chilly, and it left me shivering.

“Y-yeah,” I gulped, nodding. I felt like a frog transfixed in a snake’s glare.

“Then…okay.” At last, she let me go.

I fumbled as I tied my laces and staggered out the door.

On my back, where she’d touched me, there was a wet patch of sweat, like I’d been standing next to a fire.

(They say girls are scary, but Nagi-neesan’s freaking terrifying!)

I shivered again, lowered my head, and plunged into the chilly April wind.

 

***

 

When I entered the cafe where Orihata and I were supposed to meet, I saw something unexpected.

Like always, Orihata had arrived first; she was sitting there, waiting for me. No matter how fast I tried to get there, she was always there first. That wasn’t the unexpected part, though.

No, today, there was someone else sitting next to her. Not across from her, mind you. No, the other side of the counter was empty. This person was next to her, and it was another girl.

“Oh, is that your boyfriend? Ha ha! Right, he is handsome,” the new girl said, looking at me, then grinning at Orihata. I disliked her instantly.

“Masaki, this…” Orihata stammered. She couldn’t figure out what to tell me.

“Friend of yours?” I asked her, carefully avoiding eye contact with the other girl.

“From school… My senpai.”

“Kinukawa Kotoe,” she said, standing up and holding out her hand. “Nice to meet you, Taniguchi Masaki-kun.”

“Yeah,” I said, reluctantly shaking her hand.

She giggled. “Boy, you sure don’t hesitate to take a girl’s hand, do you? Must be experienced. Will make things easier for Orihata-san someday, huh?” She said lewdly. It wasn’t like she was making fun of me—it was more like she was trying to provoke me.

“Who are you?”

“Orihata-san’s friend. Just like you.”

“…?”

She released my hand and slapped me on the shoulder. “Right, Boogiepop-san?”

I looked at Orihata. She gave me a tiny nod. “Kinukawa-san knows everything.”

“Orihata-san told me all about it,” ‘Kinukawa-san’ said brightly. “I knew I had to help.”

This wasn’t exactly working for me. “What do you want?”

“You don’t need a reason to do the right thing,” she said reasonably, but the phrase, in this case, was just screwy.

“………” I silently picked up the check. “Uh, Orihata, come with me for a minute.”

“Oh, I don’t mean to get in your way,” Kinukawa laughed.

Sullenly, I said, “I’ll pay for this, so take your time.”

Then I took Orihata’s hand and pulled her out of the seat.

We left the shop, and Kinukawa waved at us through the window. I walked quickly away and hid beneath the bridge.

“Um, Masaki…” Orihata tried to say.

I interrupted her. “What did she do to you?”

“Nothing…”

“Who the hell does she think she is? Did she threaten you?”

“Nothing like that, really,” Orihata said, looking distressed.

I backed down. “Then what? She doesn’t look like a friend at all.”

“………”

“If you’re in some sort of trouble, I could…” I began, hands clenching into fists.

“No!” Orihata cried, turning pale, and grabbing my hand.

I took a deep breath. My sister’s voice floated through my head, “Get cocky, and you’ll get creamed.”

“O-okay, then… Sorry. But at least tell me why that girl knows about Boogiepop,” I asked, staring at her.

She avoided my gaze, staring at the ground. She looked like she was searching for a lie, which pissed me off.

 

***

 

“…She saw the clothes,” Aya managed, obviously lying.

“Where? At school?” Masaki asked. The edge in his tone made it clear he didn’t believe her.

“In my apartment. She’s my landlord’s daughter.”

This was true, but she couldn’t tell him that her personality had been changed by Spooky E.

“What?” Masaki asked, surprised. This rang a bell. He growled, “There was a sign saying Kinukawa Enterprises…” He had been to Aya’s apartment building several times, and seen the sign next to the door. “So what does she want?”

“Well…”

 

***

 

The truth was this:

Yesterday, she had received orders from Spooky E, saying that a girl named Kinukawa Kotoe would be coming over and that Aya should do whatever she said. Kotoe had shown up at Aya’s apartment shortly after.

The moment she laid eyes on her, Aya knew Spooky E had spent quite a lot of time working on her. Her expression was exactly like Spooky E’s, but she was less his arms and legs and more like an independently functioning copy.

“It’s a good thing you live in Kinukawa Kotoe’s territory,” what should have been Kotoe herself said, laughing. “We’re gonna use this as a base while we hunt down the Imaginator.”

“The Imaginator…?”

“You don’t need to know. But there will be a few men coming by, so let them in, and do whatever they ask you to.”

Aya stiffened at this. She was sure “whatever” covered a lot more than cooking.

“B-but then Masaki will…”

“Like I said, you’re almost finished with that boy. Time to cut him loose. Or are you still going on about how you don’t want him to hate you?”

“Th-the Towa Organization t-told me not to be h-hated by anyone, so…”

“The Towa Organization? You still think you’re working for them?”

Kotoe shoved Aya hard. She fell over backwards.

Kotoe then kicked her in the cheek. Aya couldn’t dodge at all, and the blow cut the inside of her mouth, spilling blood out from between her lips. Kotoe continued to hurt Aya, and Aya never resisted.

Had Kotoe had any free will left, she would have undoubtedly shrieked, “Stop!” in Aya’s place. But no one there was capable of halting the violence.

“The Towa Organization forgot about you years ago! You are nothing but a tool for me—for Spooky E, to use how I see fit!”

“Yes…”

“And where the hell do you get off, getting all picky about men now?! Can you even count how many men you’ve taken since you left the institution?”

“No…”

“All on the pretext of some experiment to see if normal and synthetic humans could crossbreed—but you never managed to get knocked up, did you? Which means you’re just a useless whore!”

“Yes…”

“All the successes I’ve had and I get no luck at all! Why should a failure like you get to have all the fun? You piece of shit! You little bitch!”

Rage that had nothing to do with Kotoe’s body, but everything to do with the knowledge and personality overwriting hers, came pouring out.

But all the expressionless Aya did was answer mechanically, “Yes…”

The beating continued a little while longer, but at last Kotoe grew out of breath, and she stopped.

“Hmph! Get up and make me some food. Kinukawa Kotoe’s body has moved too much and is demanding nutrition.”

“Yes…”

Swaying, Aya got to her feet.

She took her own convenience store bento and put it in the almost unused built-in microwave. Standing there, waiting for it to warm up, Aya’s eyes were vacant. But her lips were faintly trembling. Not from fear, but rather because she was whispering something under her breath. She spoke quietly that no one else could hear, so quietly the sound did not even reach her own ears, repeating over and over:

“I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki, I must save Masaki…”

 

***

 

…And then this morning, Spooky E had ordered Aya to bang Taniguchi Masaki. It was her last chance to test if crossbreeding with him was even possible. The cruelest joke he could make, though, was to send his copy, Kinukawa Kotoe, along to watch. It was like pouring salt directly into her wounds.

But she couldn’t tell Masaki any of this.

“I…”

“You can’t tell me?” Masaki said, sadly.

“It… it’s all my fault,” she managed.

“Okay,” Masaki nodded, like he had made up his mind about something.

Aya hoped that this had made Masaki hate her. After all, Spooky E had said her orders (to not be hated and to not make trouble) were no longer active. There was no one to criticize her for being hated. If hating her saved him, then she wanted him to hate her.

Her own feelings were another problem.

“In that case, we should stop playing Boogiepop,” Masaki said, curtly.

“Yes,” Aya said, still staring at the ground. This was for the best, she thought.

But his next words shocked her…

“So, I’ll take that,” he said, and took the Nike bag out of Aya’s hands.

“Hunh?” Aya’s eyes widened. The Boogiepop costume and makeup were in the bag.

“I’m going to keep doing this without you,” Masaki said.

 

***

 

Ultimately, I was just angry.

Kinukawa’s attitude had pissed me off, and I was annoyed that Orihata couldn’t tell me about it. But more than anything, I was furious with myself for happily dressing up as Boogiepop without once trying to figure out why Orihata wanted me to do so.

“M-Masaki?” Orihata asked, surprised. “What do you mean?”

“Like I said…I’m going on alone. I don’t need your help anymore,” I snapped.

I had assumed I was playing Boogiepop because Orihata wanted me to.

But judging from that Kinukawa woman’s attitude, Orihata had not been doing that of her own free will.

I’d been useless. By trying to make her happy, I’d simply driven her into a corner.

“But why?! You don’t have to do anything anymore, Masaki!!”

“No, you don’t!” I shouted, angry. “Why didn’t you ever tell me you really didn’t want me to be Boogiepop? If you’d just said something, you never would’ve had to have been bait!”

“I…” Orihata stammered.

“I didn’t want to put you in danger like that! But I thought it was what you wanted, so…!” I trailed off, losing track of what I wanted to say.

Both of us stood there in the darkness, glaring at each other stupidly, shaking.

Finally, “Why… why are you… I just…” Orihata whispered, sounding exhausted.

For no real reason, this made me angry again.

“Goodbye!” I roared, turning my back on her, and walking away. I couldn’t bear to be in that conversation another second.

All she’d done was use me—and for something she hadn’t even wanted. That’s how I understood the situation. So what did that make me?

All I’d done was to think cheerily that being with her was all I needed.

“Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit!”

I swung the bag filled with Boogiepop stuff around me as I ran, tears streaming down my cheeks. I was incredibly ashamed. Dressing up as Boogiepop was far less embarrassing than this.

In my mind, I screamed, I’ll be a superhero as long as I damn well feel like it!

 

***

 

“Masaki!” Aya shrieked, and tried to chase after him.

But someone grabbed her shoulder roughly from behind.

“Wait, Camille,” he said. It was Spooky E. He had been secretly watching the entire time.

“L-let go of me!” She tried to fling him off. But Spooky E was inhumanly strong, and Aya’s body might as well have been in a vise for all the freedom of movement he’d left her.

“Change of orders. Forget about him,” Spooky E sneered.

“Eh?”

“Looks like he’s going to keep doing Boogiepop on his own. Saves us the bother.”

“What do you mean?”

“Sooner or later, they’re gonna find Boogiepop’s corpse lying in an alley somewhere. Then everyone’ll know the truth behind the legends. It was just some heartbroken idiot!” Spooky E guffawed.

Aya’s face turned white. “W-was…?!”

Was that what ‘cut him loose’ meant? Kill Masaki as the ‘real’ one publicly, and make the real one ‘fake’? Was that Spooky E’s plan? If that drew the real Boogiepop out of hiding, then great—and if not, well, at least Spooky E would have cheered himself up.

He was planning to kill Masaki!

“Y-you can’t!” Aya cried, grabbing Spooky E. The shoulder he was holding felt like it was going to pop. A second later, electricity ran from Spooky E’s hands, coursing through Aya’s body. It rattled her bones, her spinal cord, her brain. Every one of her nerves shook, and her skin quivered.

“Aaaauuuugh!” Her head flung back, the walls of her nostrils tore open, and blood shot out.

(M-Masaki…!)

Even now, her immobile body was struggling to escape Spooky E’s shocking grasp.

Electricity raced through her again.

“———!” She fell unconscious.

“Bwa ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!” Spooky E’s laughter echoed on and on through the deserted space below the bridge.

 

***

 

But what was Boogiepop?

“Hah…hah…hah…” I ran till I was gasping for breath, then collapsed on the sidewalk, and started thinking.

Orihata had no family, apparently. But there had to be some sort of reason why she could live in such a nice apartment building.

And if that reason had some connection to the crazy legends of a black cloaked shinigami boy…

(…Then what?)

How the hell did that have anything to do with that ludicrous outfit?

Certainly not money. She’d thrown away drugs worth millions without so much as a second thought. If it was that type of syndicate, they’d hardly do something so wasteful. But her actions themselves did seem productive as far as cleaning up the city.

You’re a hero, Masaki. Aya had said to me once, and those words suddenly echoed through my head again.

(Damn it!)

Tears welled up once more. She’d been acting, but I couldn’t stop the burning feeling in my chest. But this was no time for crying.

I had to calm down, and decide what to do.

I looked around myself, and made sure no one else was there, then sat cross-legged on the pavement. I closed my eyes, and began meditating.

My shishou once said, When you are in trouble, at least maintain the appearance of control. Pretend to be calm. This may actually trick you into cooling down.

For a karate instructor, he never once said anything about spirit or mental focus. He’d get angry every time he saw me frowning. All in all, I must say, it was a rather strange way of learning.

Imagine a staff in your heart. Decide your direction by letting it topple over. The less logic you force into your imagination, the better the results.

But the staff in my heart just spun round and round, and never once started to fall.

At times like this, the way you are tackling the problem is mistaken. You are trying to decide something that cannot be decided. The first thing you need to do is look for that which you can.

…I was starting to feel like shishou was whispering in my ear.

(Okaaay…)

Did I hate Orihata?

…No, I didn’t.

Did I dislike being Boogiepop?

…Not true either.

Was I trying to poke my nose in something way over my head?

…Yeah, probably.

Was this because I wanted to be Boogiepop, so I could beat up people?

…No, not really. Not that at all.

Then what?

…I don’t know. But I can’t just do nothing. I think I have to do something.

What was it I had to be careful of?

…Don’t get carried away. Shishou always said that. And…

“—Nagi-neesan,” I said aloud and opened my eyes. “Right. I can’t go home, then.” I couldn’t get her mixed up in this. That had been bugging me.

(She’ll be pissed…)

I stood up, dusted myself off, and managed a feeble grin.

Here I was, just starting high school, and already I was gonna be skipping.

If I’d known I was gonna end up like this, I wouldn’t have been so careful in junior high…

“Ha ha! I sure was an idiot!”

Hoisting the Boogiepop bag over my back, I headed off down the street.