Yori laced his fingers through Kozue's and gave his hand a re-assuring squeeze. He needed to keep him calm. If he panicked, they might make a mistake. A nervous flinch, a stumble over clumsy footing, an unseen exhibit, any one could cause disaster if the girl on the loudspeaker was to be believed.

He wouldn't let that happen. Not to him, and not to Kozue. Not to anyone else if he could help it. Useless and reckless as they might be, he had no idea what kind of chain reaction they might set off while they destroyed the scenery. One wrong move, and the whole world comes tumbling down around them. They needed caution. Determination. Details.

Yori's specialties. 

He moved forward with Kozue, pulling his way into the large, dusty room. The morose paintings loomed around them as they paused inside the room. "Wait, Kozue."

Something wasn't right here. "Look at them," he mused, "there is a theme." He pointed to the mannequin. "Life." Then the rain. "Death. Inverted, to trick the the mind." A finger tapped his chin thoughtfully as he watched the paintings. "It's ingenious, really. The noose is a symbol of suicide, or punishment, the ultimate price for one's deeds. Yet the mannequin is not dead. A mannequin lives only through posing, through observation, through its message. By stringing the mannequin, you give it life, where there should be death."

His finger and his gaze drifted to the painting. "And this. Blood, raining from the skies. Blood, the fuel of life, becomes a harbinger of death when it leaves the body. Unlike water, there is no cycle to be found here. The blood rain is a swan song echoing against the streets before the final death knell."

Yori's voice raised as he called out into the empty gallery. "My compliments. Your imagery is captivating. But tell me, please..." he murmured more softly, drawing closer to the wilted rose. "This piece. What is its purpose? We have already gone from life to death. What comes next, patron?"

A soft smile drifted across his face, and he caught Kozue in the corner of his eye. This was his element. This was how he would keep them safe. This was how he would bring them home.