Fast Forward. Rewind

[nilielh]

Title : Fast Forward. Rewind (Part 1)
Pairing : Ohno/Nino
Rating : PG
Summary : He’d been trying to uncover the truth about the events prior to their departure from Yamato for years, but all he could dig out from it was the same thing that had been reported repeatedly on national television, regarding the congregation’s involvement in the attack in Tokyo, and nothing more.
Warning : mentions of mass murder, religious cults
Note : Trying my hands on writing again. This is the result of watching too many crime documentaries in my free time. Also loosely based on that 1995 Tokyo Sarin Gas Attack  Also, Happy birthday, Ninomiya-san. Hope your tomatoes are healthy.

 

 

Yamato, Spring 1995

“Kazu, wake up. It’s time to go.”

The voices woke him before the shuffling noises did, and for a moment, Kazunari wondered if it was another exercise they all had to participate before the sun was even up. He groaned; his body complaining even before his mouth had a chance to. He’d barely managed to shake himself awake before his mother did it for him, tugging him up from his sprawl on the futon, helping him into a somewhat sitting position and effectively making him give up any hopes for a few more minutes of precious sleep.

He was still blinking sleep out of his eyes when he caught his sister on the opposite side of the room, a woman Kazunari didn’t recognize was standing next to her and helping her put on her jacket.  

Kazunari opened his mouth to ask who the other woman was but he never got the chance, because then his mother was helping him into his jacket next. Her voice was unmistakably hurried when she pointed at something stacked on the opposite wall. Kazunari’s gaze followed the direction she was pointing at, frowning at the lump in that corner, but he couldn’t tell what it was. The room was bathed with just barely enough light for Kazunari to see.  

It was when she’d spoken again that he realized what his mother was pointing at.  

“Go grab those bags, Rie,” his mother said to Kazunari’s sister; then, she turned to him and said, “Kazu, you and your sister are going back to Tokyo with Sakurai-san tonight, okay?”

“To Ji-san’s house?” he asked, perking up a little at the possibility that he might be right. It’d been close to a year since they’ve migrated here, leaving everything behind – the house he grew up in, school, his father’s job, his grandparents from both sides, friends, all because his father’s new religion required him to do so. He hadn’t thought leaving this place was possible, especially given his father’s unwavering determination to keep them here, but maybe, just maybe, his wish was going to be granted.

“No,” she said, shaking her head, and Kazunari’s disappointment might have showed up on his face so quickly, because then his mother was smiling, and adding, “but you will soon, I promise.” she replied, before she pulled him into a quick embrace.  

“Be good, okay?” she reminded him with a smile that looked anything but happy. He grabbed one of her hands before she could pull away from him completely, and before she could push him forward to where his sister stood, next to the woman near the door.

 “What about you?” he asked, worrying his lower lip as he stared up at her. “You’re coming with us, right?”

She shook her head and reached down to touch his face. Her hand was cold against his skin, but her gaze told a completely different story altogether. Kazunari felt a strange twinge in his chest as he looked at her, knowing for certain where she would rather be

And it certainly wasn’t here.

“Not this time, no, but I’ll be with you guys as soon as I can,” she said, but Kazunari was convinced she was lying. He knew she couldn’t just leave his father behind even if she wanted to, but that there was a bigger reason why she was sneaking behind his back so that they could. This escape was nothing but unplanned. There was no better word for it but that, and Kazunari was certain it had something to do with the group Leader’s recent disappearance, along with his close devotees. His father included.  

“Maybe even sooner than you think. For now, I need you to be good and just do as I say, okay? Sakurai-san will make sure to get you to safety and take care of you and your sister for me.”

His father’s absence undoubtedly gave Kazunari’s mother this one chance to plan their escape, given the way she was obviously trying to end this conversation as quickly as she could manage it so she could chase them out of the door.

Kazunari knew better than to prod, so he’d simply nodded and let himself be pushed forward, but stopped shortly when he remembered something.

“Can I say goodbye to Oh-chan first, before we go?” he asked, knowing he sounded as hopeful as he felt.

His mother pursed her lips and shook her head, before shoving him across the room to where his sister and the other woman were waiting.

“No time for that, Kazu. I’m sorry, but you have to go. Now.”

 

+

Tokyo General Hospital

Tokyo, Present day

 

It was one hell of a busy day, and Nino was exhausted. He’d finally gotten the break he’d been aching for since morning, but rather than catering to his grumbling stomach first, he’d opted on resting his equally-aching feet instead. By this time, the waiting area up on the fifth floor would normally be deserted, so after his badly needed five-minute cigarette break, he found himself here, on one of the empty benches, lying on his back and staring up at the ceiling.

He’d initially planned to take a nap when he got here, but apparently, sleep was elusive when he had lots of things in mind.

The news of his father’s impending execution, and their mother’s whereabouts; plus, the ongoing investigation on the recently found mass grave in Yamato, miles away from where the congregation was once based.  

“I take it this means you have no pending operations today, Tokai-Sensei?” someone’s voice broke through Nino’s quiet musing, squinting at the familiar figure approaching from the relatively close distance. Nino sighed and scrambled upright to sit.

“If I have, obviously, you won’t find me lounging in here,” he muttered, “And for your information, I already did four since I started my shift,” he said, as he watched the other man unhurriedly took a seat beside him, stretching his legs and making himself comfortable next to Nino. As usual, he was on his dark-blue suit and his brown, leather back bag. Unsurprisingly, his lawyer pin was nowhere to be seen.

“And I’m sure they’d page me if I’m needed. What are you doing here?” 

The other man shrugged. “Your sister called. She said you weren’t answering her texts.”

“I left my phone in the nap room,” Nino answered, “Is it so important that she even convinced you to come here just to tell me about it?”

“Not really. But I told her I’m dropping by to visit you anyway, so she told me to verbally box your ears on her behalf.”

Nino eyed the other man quizzically. “That makes it even more troubling. I know you didn’t come here to follow my sister’s orders, or to chat, so, what is it? Why are you really here, Jun?” 

“It’s Miyama, Tokai-Sensei, if in case you have forgotten.”

He bristled. “I haven’t, but it’s just the two of us here,” he replied, unperturbed, and gave Jun a look, “I can call you whatever the hell I want.” He added. Jun chuckled in response, but he said nothing. His reaction made Nino feel more like a jerk the longer Jun sat there, not saying anything. 

It normally didn’t bother him anymore, being addressed with a name he wasn’t born with, but he guessed such thing was inevitable at times like this. In private, those who knew him personally still called him by his real name, and it felt good, somehow, knowing that he hadn’t lost everything he thought he did, the night he and his sister fled that place for good. Changing their names was not a choice they’d have willingly accepted, but it was a necessity. It was done to keep them safe.

The same thing Jun had to do in order to stay alive.

“Are you here because of my father?” Nino asked after a moment, keeping his voice low. It could be, especially when the news about those directly involved in the attack in Tokyo, more than twenty-five years ago were set to be executed came out, but he wasn’t really sure. For all he knew, Jun could be here for something else entirely. 

Jun shook his head. “You do know that’s a lost case,” Jun said; there was that unspoken kindness behind the smile he’d offered Nino, and Nino felt somewhat undeserving of it.

“What is this about, then?” he prodded, anxious and equal-parts frustrated. He never really liked this guessing game Jun was obviously so fond of, no matter how exciting Jun thought it was.

Nino watched as Jun produced something out of his suit jacket, a paper, it seemed like, and handed it over for Nino to take.

Nino darted his gaze between the paper in his hand and on Jun’s face. “What is it?”

“Initial site report on the mass grave found in Yamato,” Jun replied, looking and sounding grave.

Nino was certain the look on Jun’s face mirrored exactly what was written on his own.

“And?”

“It’s just as we’ve suspected,” Jun muttered, “Thirty eight bodies in total, Nino. And forensics report states that majority of the bone remains found in that grave are that of children, age ranging from ten and below. But there are also those that are older, clearly belonging to teenagers aged twelve to seventeen. And all of them have been buried there for more than twenty years.”

Nino was trembling, and he was certain it wasn’t because of the cold. If what Jun was saying was true, then he could safely assume that this was the very reason his mother was hell bent on making him and his sister leave that night, while his father was gone.

“So, you’re saying they were buried…around the same time we were there?”

The look on Jun’s face was answer enough.  

+

 

Yamato, Summer 1994

The house they’ve moved into was small, and practically bare. There was just the tiny table in the living room that could pass up as a dining table, a small heater in the corner, a stove in the kitchen, and four sets of futons in the bedroom. The bathroom was even tinier that Kazunari was certain only one person could fit in there at a time, so wishing for a washing machine would be pointless.

The building itself was quaint; the off-white painted walls obviously needed retouching. It was quiet, almost too much so that Kazunari was afraid he might go mad if he stayed in this place for long.

“I told you we should have stayed at Ji-chan’s place,” he told his sister when he spotted her emerging from the bedroom, dragging her backpack behind her. Their parents, thankfully, weren’t around. “This place crawls.”

“Be quiet. You don’t want Father to hear you.” she said, but there was an edge in her voice that told Kazunari she was thinking of the same thing too.

“It’ll be my birthday soon. Do you think if I say I want to go back to Tokyo and spend my birthday there, he will agree?”

His sister dropped her bag down and surged forward to grab Kazunari by his shoulders. “Have you already forgotten what he did when you asked him if you could take your game console with you, Kazu? He nearly beat you to death!” she hissed, her fingers shook against their grip on Kazunari’s shoulders.

“Nee-chan…”

“I’m not sure what is happening, Kazu, but your guess is as good as mine. They brought us here because that’s what the Leader told them. I’m sure our grandparents have no idea we’re even here.” She said, releasing him quickly when they both heard the sound of footsteps coming from outside the front door.

It was their parents, and standing behind them was a man Kazunari didn’t recognize. 

“These are our children,” Kazunari’s father said, gesturing inside to both him and his sister. “Rie and Kazunari. Kids, meet our neighbor, Aiba-san. He told me he lives here with his son. You’ll meet him later when we join the rest of the congregation for the evening prayer.”

All he and his sister could do was nod.

+

Tokyo Police Department

Tokyo, Present day

 

To be honest, Nino didn’t like the idea of involving his friends in his quest to get answers, but desperate times called for desperate measures, and Nino was running out of options. He’d been trying to uncover the truth about the events prior to their departure from Yamato for years, but all he could dig out from it was the same thing that had been reported repeatedly on national television, regarding the congregation’s involvement in the attack in Tokyo, and nothing more.

But he and his sister were convinced there was more to it than what was widely known, because they were there in Yamato at the time when it most-likely started. It was unthinkable back then, but later on they realized that it made sense, somehow; it was possibly what had persuaded his mother to defy the odds and planned their escape to save them.

The discovery of the mass grave there recently, so close to the site where the congregation was once established, only proved that they were not wrong.

Aiba looked skeptical at first when he told him what he’d suspected; at least once Aiba had made sure they were out of Detective Nemoto’s earshot. The guy didn’t seem too welcoming, muttering something about their unit being so busy that Katayama-san would have to go back immediately to do some actual police work, rather than meeting up with friends during work-hours. 

Aiba Masaki, or Katayama Yoshitaro to his co-workers, only bowed his head and apologized profusely, before tugging Nino away. 

“You seriously think those…those bodies belong to the children of the members?” Aiba asked, he looked and sounded disturbed, though it could be because his friend was imagining the horror of it all. It wasn’t a secret that Aiba had this very inconvenient habit of fainting at the sight of blood; the thought of burying (and finding) that huge numbers of bodies was clearly enough to give Aiba, or Detective Katayama as he’s known by colleagues, the shivers.  

“It’s what I’m trying to find out,” he said, “And I’m hoping you could help me.”

Aiba didn’t seem too enamored at the prospect of getting himself involved in anything that would require him to examine dead bodies, or dead people’s bones for that matter, even though Nino hadn’t yet mentioned what exactly he needed Aiba’s assistance for.  

Aiba pursed his lips.

“If you’re here to ask me to provide you with updated reports regarding that Yamato mass grave case, then okay. I suppose that could be arranged. I mean, I can ask the chief to make a few calls for me and I’m sure I’ll have the reports sent to me sooner than later.”

“Thanks, but I’m afraid I will be needing more than just those reports, Aiba-shi.” He returned. Aiba sputtered, holding out a hand to cover Nino’s mouth in haste.  

“Keep it down, will you? What if someone hears you?” Aiba hissed, sounding and looking unsettled. “Fine, what else do you need?” 

“Detailed forensics report,” he said, “I’m sure they’re working on finding out the identities of the bodies buried there. I need to know that too.”

“What…Are you serious?” Aiba asked, incredulous.

“Yes,”

“But, why?” Aiba asked, frowning hard. “You do know that would require more than a few phone calls, Sei-chan. And I hate to point out the obvious but you’re clearly asking me to do something we have agreed we wouldn’t. Weren’t you the one who insisted we should be careful?”

 Nino nodded and swallowed hard. He hadn’t forgotten about that, of course, of course, but this was him trying to do what he couldn’t back then. He’d kept all of it with him for over twenty-five years, the pain and regret of not being able to do anything, from breaking a promise he’d given a friend when he agreed to leave with his sister that night to save himself. 

“I’m not asking you to help me with this just for kicks, Aiba-shi,” he muttered, his voice just loud enough for Aiba to hear. “I’m doing this because I have to know that Oh-chan’s not in there. I need to see it for myself. I need to know that Oh-chan managed to escape that hell too, the same way we did twenty-five years ago.”