[color=A9A9A9][h2]Northwestern District[/h2][/color][indent]
Gotou bowed back, and smiled at the silent Aya as well, apparently not noticing the suspicion aimed in his direction. With care, the man took the child into his arms, resting her chin on his shoulder and hugging her against his chest. “I’m...not too certain myself,” he spoke after a moment’s pause. “She’d been having nightmares on and off the past couple of weeks, but this was the first time she had...hm...well, we were just walking down the side streets, down by Eizou’s Laundromat.”

He pursed his lips briefly, then stood up.

“I went into the Laundromat with Suzuha, left her in the play area while I did my business n all. When I came out, she was gone, and, well…” The man rubbed his cheek against the top of her head. “Just glad that I found her.”
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[color=A9A9A9][h2]Southern District[/h2][/color][indent]
“To risk your own teeth for a stray that you’ve had no connection with,” the badass in a motorcycle suit said, “Truly, you too are an ally of justice!”

With a hearty clap on Otoya’s shoulder (made awkward by the fact that the spray-painting, meat-sitting, live-house-touring student was still lying on the ground), he hoisted him back onto his feet, patting the dust off his back before offering the musician a firm handshake. “I am Kobayashi Mitsuo, currently investigating a string of cat murders across Tenoroshi! Young man, I must ask! Have you any knowledge of such dark dealings? Were [i]those[/i] bottomfeeding, cat-molesting scum the perpetrators, or just a pack of vultures, drawn to unnatural violence?”
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[color=A9A9A9][h2]Central District[/h2][/color][indent]
Hiroyuki’s expression softened, and he walked around the table to where Sayuri sat. Bending down, he pressed his lips against her forehead. “There’ll be plenty of time for us once summer comes,” he said, pulling away. “Just be patient ‘til then, alright, Sa-chan?”

With the warmth of lingering longing in his smile, he turned, leaving his leftovers on the table as he stepped into the staircase and then, out of sight.

[hr]

The Fisherman’s Market was within walking distance of the Urban Exploration clubhouse, and thank the gods for that. Half the ice in the bag had melted into cool water by the time the old building was in sight, and Iwao could practically smell the sweat that was vaporizing off his skin. If he looked in the mirror, his reflection would have been distorted from the heat that radiated off of everything, and while some young couples could thwart off the heat of the summer sun with the power of love and cute clothes alone, Iwao was [i]just[/i] alone, with a bag of fish that’ll go bad and a body thirstier than fourteen year olds in their first co-ed physical education class.

Relief was in sight though. Standing starkly in the white light was that three-story building that had been renovated to become barely livable. It wasn’t home, necessarily, but it was a place to drop off fish, at least. And cook it too, hopefully. When he strode past the cement-block walls of the building, the door opened up, revealing Hiroyuki in his usual well-dressed attire. The handsome youth grinned, not unkindly, at Iwao’s appearance, before stepping off to the side and holding the door open for him.

“Hell of a scorcher, ne?” he said. “Think there’s still a beer in the fridge, if you wanna snag it before Mochi does.”
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