Looking Beyond - 1x1

[Akiko-infinity]

This is a 1x1 between Myuki Tod and Akiko-infinity. Please no posting, kay?  

[Myuki Tod]

Shopping day, probably Myuki's least favourite day of the week. The streets of Los Angeles were hard enough to navigate when she wasn't feigning sleep. She could have swore that she'd bumped into at least three people, probably more. Not to mention the headache that she'd been fighting for the last two days. She paused at a traffic light and waited for the mob of people to begin walking across the crosswalk. The light across the street blinked red, and she closed her eyes for a moment. Maybe she could shake the headache that way.

Alas, the mob began to walk across the street only seconds later. She was carried away in the crowd. Where was she going again? Oh, right, to the grocery store. What did she need? Her hand went to her pocket to find a piece of paper with a few notes scribbled on it. Was this her shopping list? "221 Insist Street, Hollywood" No, not a shopping list. An address. She shoved it back into her pocket and gave a sigh. Did she have a shopping list? She couldn't remember.

Another stop light, this one was blinking red again. The mob stopped walking, and she closed her eyes once again. What did she need? What did she need? Milk? Eggs? No, they seemed to simplistic for a trip to the store. If she needed something special, she would have remembered. If it were the regular things, she would have written a list. Wouldn't she? Did she even need to shop? Why was today shopping day?

Her hand went to her pocket again. Perhaps it wasn't shopping day. Did that piece of paper have something to do with her trip? Hollywood was on the other side of town, she wouldn't be walking. She probably should have taken a tram. The crosswalk turned white; the mob moved once again.
Myuki remained where she was, staring at the little slip of paper in her hand. If she were going across the street, she'd have to wait another turn. The white person turned into a red hand twice before she decided to move. She had forgotten why she left home, and so back to her home she went. Could she find her way? Where was she?

Her eyes searched the streets for familiar surroundings, but nothing stuck out. How many streets had she crossed? How many people had seen her go by? What stores did she walk past? Where was she going? She backed herself up against the wall, out of peoples' way. They knew where they were going. Why didn't she? A sigh, she hung her head and focused on the paper again. A strand of straight black hair fell over her eye as she focused on the numbers. "221 What an odd number. There should be another two, or another one. Two plus two was four, not one. Two minus two was zero, not one. Two times two, two divided by two. That was it, two divided by two was one. She was satisfied, and put the paper back in her pocket, but remained against the wall. She still had no idea where she was, and didn't quite have the energy to stand up straight and try to read street signs.  

[Akiko-infinity]

August fourteenth. The game was soon to begin. But of course, it was a game who's outcome was already determined. That would make it all the sweeter, in the end. L was looking by now. Surely he was. And when he did intervene...he'd pick someone. Someone to do his dirty work, to be his puppet. And then, B would be waiting for them. Not to kill them, no. That would be pointless, not to mention detrimental to the game. No, B would have to insure that L's pawn played along properly. After all...there would be no point in it if things didn't go exactly right. He couldn't have L realizing his plan -that just wouldn't do.

So it was with a twisted sense of duty that BB rose from his bed that morning. Three murders. It would be enough to make the pattern possible to follow. He would have to be ready tomorrow. Yes, surely tomorrow would be the day L made his move. The day after the third murder would be spent finding the perfect shield. B was prepared. Well, almost. There was the matter of being at 221 Insist St when the agent of L's arrived. Everything else was already in place. Now it was just a matter of moving the pieces on the board.

BB decided that he'd best get a move on. While he was certain that L's agent would not arrive until the fifteenth, he had to make sure that everything was as it should be. B walked. You couldn't trace the tags on a pedestrian, after all. Even if you could, there were twenty million people in Los Angeles. No one stood out. He made his way down the road, already having stashed his disguise carefully near the house. Not close enough to be found during the police investigation, of course. No, someone who was greater than L would never make such an amateurish mistake. As he walked, the thousands of names rolling by his sight...thousands of death dates....a familiar name caught his eye. A name without a death date. So....she was here? Hm...She was facing sideways from him, so he took the liberty of walking up next to her and simply leaning on the wall alongside her. He would wait...5...4...3...2...1...  

[Myuki Tod]

Her eyes remained closed, her head still throbbing. Questions swam around in her mind. She was about to bring her hand up to her head to put pressure on, another attempt at throwing off the headache, when she felt a presence beside her. As if a practice, she dropped her hand to her side and stood up straighter. She let her eyes roll to the corners, and peered out beneath her matted hair. She had apparently forgotten to brush it before she left the house this morning. Another thing that slipped her mind.

She saw a man standing there beside her. Why was he beside her? Had she left the house to meet him here? No, she didn't think she'd left the house to meet anyone. Then again, she couldn't remember why the slip of paper was in her pocket either, or what the address was for. "Two divided by two is one," she told herself over and over in her head. That was the only justifiable reason she could think of that the paper was in her pocket. And even so, it wasn't a very good reason.

She blinked a few times, trying to get her straining eyes to focus on him. When she finally did (but with a great pain to her temples), she found her eyes drawn to his tousled black hair. She felt like she knew him. Did she know him? She blinked again, forcing her eyes into focus. Black hair. His eyes. His eyes? She searched his face for his eyes. When she found them, her head tilted to the side, much like a dog does when it's curious. "Do I know you?" she asked aloud. The sound of her voice made her jump. She'd been listening to it in her head for so long that it sounded strange coming from somewhere other than her own mind.  

[Akiko-infinity]

She looked a bit of a mess. It could be due to how disorientated she was. In fact, that was undoubtedly the reason. Wandering around aimlessly, no doubt. Her hair unbrushed, she no doubt resembled one of the many unfortunate souls that wander the streets. Leaning against a wall, looking scraggly, in Hollywood like that, like she was waiting for a bus, she was liable to be mistaken for a hooker if she weren't careful.

Myuki was obviously having head trouble. She was searching his face, obviously finding something familiar. Hm...now, as for the question..."I very much doubt it..." He replied in answer. In fact, he was sure. He laughed mentally to himself. Of course, just being near someone for so long hardly meant that you knew them. So no, Myuki did not know him. Not even close.

She'd jumped at the sound of her own voice. Obviously unused to talking to another. She should try talking out loud to herself. It worked for B, anyway. "You do look familiar though...." he mused aloud. He waved it off, as though it were unimportant. He turned his attention to a new question; namely, her destination. "I find it odd that you'd be just chilling out on a wall by yourself..." he pointed out with interest, "are you lost? Waiting for someone?" He wondered how long before she recognized him. Probably soon. This was turning into fun...of course, this game was secondary. But an amusing one nonetheless.

[OOC: I thought it would be funny for her to eventually realize it's B and be all, "Hey! You said I didn't know you!"]  

[Myuki Tod]

His voice made her jump, too. Something about him was familiar, she knew it. Deciding she wanted a better look at him, Myu began to step away from the wall. As she moved, her eyes darted from him to her feet, not wanting to seem like an idiot if she fell over. Still, falling for her was nearly inevitable. She began to topple over. Flailing a bit, she managed to catch herself mid-fall. Feeling much like a klutz, she quickly looked up at him.

Did he see that? She hoped he didn't, but he probably did. After all, he seemed to notice her. Out of all the people wandering the streets, he chose to stand beside her on the wall. He chose to speak with her. But why? She couldn't think of any reasons, and so she started to search his eyes. Something about them was familiar, but she couldn't put her finger on it. She felt it had something to do with her past. Something. But what?

"Are you sure I don't know you?" She forgot that he'd asked her anything. More or less because she didn't know the answer to his questions in the first place, so she disregarded them.

[OOC: That's fine~ Little twists like that are what makes it fun. c: ]  

[Akiko-infinity]

B watched her pull away from the wall. He also watched her almost faceplant into the concrete as well. She recovered herself mid-fall, however, and he was once again confronted with a question he'd already answered. Deciding a different answer couldn't hurt, he smiled. "No, I can't be sure. But I know you, Myuki..." His eyes were dancing with amusement. Time to move on in this game. He had a move to make in another one. A much more important one. After all, if B were to surpass L, it must be done perfectly. He could not afford to be to focused on another play at the same time.

He turned from her at that point to look around..."Insist...insist..." he murmured as he looked around thoughtfully. He knew exactly where the street was, of course. He wasn't actually looking for it. But Myuki? Hm. "Now where is it...? Hm...down that way to the left, perhaps...?" He shook it off again, turning back to Myuki. "So, figured anything out yet?" He asked ambiguously.  

[Myuki Tod]

The moment he said her name a thousand light bulbs went off in her head. Everything hit her all at once. "B!" she shouted, holding herself back for a full out tackle-hug. Something else he said caught her ear, though. "Insist? You mean Insist Street?" The attention span of a gnat, she had. She cocked her head to the side again and put her hand in her pocket, fishing for the little slip of paper.

She looked around, but didn't see anything familiar. After all, she was still lost. "I think that's where I'm supposed to be going. I don't know where it is, though." She also didn't know where she was. Hollywood wasn't a frequent place for her. Not on foot, anyways. Why did she walk? She didn't even know how to get back home from here. The piece of paper found her hand, and she pulled it out, handing it to B. "Is this where you're going?"  

[Akiko-infinity]

Finally. Myuki was certainly slow today. However at least she did get it, so he'd give her that one. She could have been much slower, to be honest. B often forgot that he had to give people credit for catching up eventually. And she instantly caught his words, so that was a point. Of course, he knew she would...He watched her with curiosity on his face as she rummaged through her pocket. She thought that was where she was going? Naturally she was lost. He took the slip of paper from her. The address was written on it, of course. 221 Insist st. Hollywood. He nodded to Myuki. "Yes, as a matter of fact. So, are you investigating as well?" He asked with interest, his head turning to the side as he pretended to study her. "Come to think of it Myuki...what are you doing here in LA?"

[OOC: Sorry for the short-post]  

[Myuki Tod]

Investigating? Was she investigating something? Had L put her up to this? No, no. She didn't remember talking to L recently. She didn't remember anything recently, though. What was wrong with her? She stared blankly at him for a moment, not even blinking. She tried to find her words.

"I don't think I am. I.." she paused, her words were lost again. "I don't know." That was the only thing going through her head. "I don't know. I don't know." She looked around her again. Eye contact was hard to maintain because it required focus. Focus was what she was lacking. "I don't remember. I think I'm here for something." she paused, then looked back up at him. "What are you doing in LA?" Reciprocating his question, that was the only thing she could think of to do.

[OOC: Quality over quantity~ If you can give me something to work with, it does not matter one bit. :3]  

[Akiko-infinity]

She stared at him blankly. She had no clue. And was beginning to sound like a parrot. Okay, then. Moving on to the next phase. 'Yes, it would stand to reason that you must be here for something, Myuki...' He nodded. "I see. Well, I'm here investigating a case. 221 Insist St. was the scene of the first crime." He looked very seriously at Myuki. "The newspapers are calling them the Wara Ningyo murders...have you heard about them? Odd that this address should be your destination if you were not investigating..." He asked. He already knew her answer to the question. After her answer, he added, "Myuki. Are you having significant memory trouble? As opposed to just forgetting what you were doing?"  

[Myuki Tod]

It was a bit of an insult that he would ask her such a thing. He knew her. He knew what she was like. Furiously, she shook her head. A bit too violently, she got a bit dizzy and nearly fell over again. "No, no. I've got a headache. I can't.. I can't focus." she blinked a few times. "I don't remember what I was doing. I left the house for something, I.. thought I was going shopping. But the address was in my pocket and..." she stopped talking. Now she felt like she sounded like a babbling idiot. "Sigh." She looked around again, trying to get used to the surroundings. She tried very hard to remember what she had been doing.

Another shake of her head. She simply couldn't grasp it. She knew it was there, but her mind just wouldn't settle. Damn headaches. "I heard about the murders, but only in passing. I haven't actually been getting into them myself. Things like that don't concern me, so I take little interest in them." Maybe she was in LA for another reason? The murders certainly weren't it. She specifically remembered that she'd only heard about them on the TV, not anywhere else.  

[Akiko-infinity]

Mn? BB listened to her...and couldn't decide if this was interesting or boring. The fact that he couldn't tell made it interesting. Alrighty then. Now, as for Myuki..."I see. That's certainly strange. You must have had the address in your pocket for a reason, and the murder is really the only thing that might attract someone's attention...." He looked thoughtful for a moment.

He needed to get a move on if he was going to be prepared for L's agent. It was definitely not Myuki, of course. Now, there were a couple of agents from various police organizations currently otherwise unoccupied that may be L's choice. To be honest, B couldn't wait to see the new pawn in this game..."Well...I myself need to go there and check it out. Myuki, do you think you should go back home? Or would you prefer to go to the address that was in your pocket?" He kicked off the wall. Either way, he was going to get moving. He looked at her expectantly, awaiting her answer.

[OOC: Sorry for the long wait and lame post...it's been a long weekend...]  

[Myuki Tod]

She thought on his question for a moment, deciding what to do. She obviously left the house for something, and if the piece of paper was in her pocket, that had to be the reason, didn't it? Still, she felt a bit disorganized, and wasn't sure if she wanted to go. A small sigh escaped her lips and she looked around again. Still, nothing stuck out at her. She looked back at B. So much had changed, but his eyes were still the same. She loved his eyes, and she always had.

"I think I'll go with you." she said with a smile. "After all, I've not a clue where I am and obviously don't need to be out here on my own." She laughed nervously. Obvious wasn't quite the term she was looking for, but it was the word her mind came up with. "Speaking of which..." she glanced around, turning her head noticeably from side to side, "where are we?"

[OOC: Ah, it's totally okay. xD I've been all over the place as well. <3 ]  

[Akiko-infinity]

After a moment, Myuki made her decision. She would go with B. Oh good, this could be fun...And she openly admitted she had no clue where she was. Wandering around with no clue as to her location. Not a smart move, but oh well. He smiled as she asked the question. "Hollywood, about....two blocks from Insist st, if I'm not mistaken, and I don't think I am..."

Myuki...even now, he could not see it. Her death. The day of her death was not over her head...at least not that he could see, and to this day its absence perplexed him. Perhaps that was why he enjoyed her company. It was uncertain as to when it would end. A variable of unpredictability.

"Come on, it's this way, I'm fairly certain." He led the way, the two blocks travel used as time to confirm all the pieces on the board. It wouldn't be long now...they were almost there. "Myuki, when did you come to LA?"