by Lucky Charms

Disclaimers: This story is a fan-fiction based on the Japanese Anime, Fushigi Yuugi. All references to the characters belong to the creator(s) by right. The song lyrics used within the story also belong to the writers/performers by right. However, everything else belongs to me! So no using them without my permission.

Son Ji is quite angstful and has an obvious gay theme. There will be sexual situations as well as some adult language. So if such things are offensive to you, or are illegal in your state/country, please do not continue any further.

Feedback is always welcome: luckycharms@e-scribblers.com.

Copyright © 2004 by Lucky Charms. All Rights Reserved.

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There is a slight knock on Officer Aeryk Green's office door and he looks up from his pile of well overdue paper work and lets out a sigh. He puts down his pen, lowers his CD player and beckons for the person to enter.

Derryk Smith, Chief of the newly established F.Y. Police, enters the room. A man of just thirty-two, Derryk is a man of great wealth, and prestige. Little is known about the billionaire except that he has networks throughout the city that aid his task force immensely. He is a warm-hearted man with a full head of brown hair and soft brown eyes.

He sits on the black leather couch across from Aeryk's desk and looks around the newly decorated office briefly.

Though the office is not of any grand scale, it is comfortable enough for Aeryk's needs. He has a large oak bookshelf with a cloud-glass door. Several books, mostly foreign and science fiction inhabit the bookshelf. There are several healthy green plants placed within the corners, and ceiling, of the sunlit room. There are a few Japanese and Chinese scrolls hanging on the eastern wall, and below them a large fish tank filled with colorful and exotic fish.

He catches a glimpse of a picture with Aeryk and his, rather large, family on his desk. His stomach turns slightly as he remembers the tragedy of the 3016 earthquake that devastated the entire planet. Of all the people that died within that quake, Aeryk is the sole survivor of his family.

"So, what can I do for yah boss?" Aeryk asks somewhat cheerfully.

Derryk turns his attention to the young man who was damn near like a son to him. He looks into Aeryk's soft blue/green eyes and smiles slightly. "I have something I need for you and Brian to take care of for me."

Aeryk glances at the mountain of paperwork then back to Derryk. "Um, can't you ask Aaron or Jackie to do it?"

Derryk shakes his head, still smiling. "This is something I need for you two to take care of. Aaron and Jackie are virtual nut cases when they're together and you know that. Jeff is busy with an assignment, and Brent, well…" He pauses. "The man might be a little creepy for this."

"And just what is this, precisely?" Aeryk asks, trying not to loose his patience.

"I just hired a new guy on, and I want for you to show him around the city for me."

Aeryk frowns. "But I have all this paperwork to do sir."

"And you can take care of it for me later, okay?" He raises to his feet then smoothes out his black slacks and deep red silk shirt. "I should've worn a tie with this." He mumbles, and Aeryk chuckles.

The uniform of the F.Y. Police, for the regular officers anyway, is much like uniforms of the officers over a century ago. Aeryk is wearing a deep red cotton t-shirt, with black pants and boots. He is wearing, much to his backs torment, his black belt with his gun, handcuffs, and spare magazines. He refuses to wear the black hat, for the sake of his hair he complains, until it is absolutely necessary. He quickly puts on his golden badge, the symbol of a phoenix etched in the center and rises from his desk.

Derryk opens the door and a young man of about sixteen enters the room. He is wearing the same uniform as Aeryk, but has a whirl of brown hair and bright hazel eyes. He adjusts his large round glasses and beams up at Aeryk from his five foot five stature. He takes off the hat and nods at Aeryk and Derryk.

"Officer Aeryk Green, this is Officer Joe Campbell." Derryk introduces the two. "Joe, Aeryk is going to show you around the city today with is partner, Officer Brian Johnson." He turns to leave the office. "Oh, and I'll have your badge for you by the end of the day."

Joe salutes Derryk diligently. "Thank you sir." He states.

Derryk smiles kindly, and then turns to Aeryk with mirth in his eyes. "He's the only slag around here that gives me my due respect. Where have I gone wrong with you?"

Aeryk smiles back. "You hired us, sir."

"Alright, alright Green." Derryk says, his eyes rolling. "Just make sure the Campbell gets a good feel for the office alright?" Aeryk nods and the Chief leaves, shutting the door.

"So what's your code name Campbell?" Aeryk asks.

Code names are one of the many unique things about the F.Y. Police. They are often given as nicknames when the recruits are going through the academy and stick with them their entire career. They are mostly used when out in the field, as a way of communication without divulging ones true identity, which can be dangerous in this field.

"They call me Stretch, sir." Joe says saluting again.

Aeryk arches a brow. "Stretch, eh?" He chuckles. "How did you get that name?"

Joe smiles slightly. "The guys at the academy often joked about my height, sir."

Aeryk falls back into his chair and looks briefly at Joe and then motions for him to sit on the couch. "You're very well spoken for someone your age. And you can stop calling me 'sir'. I'm just Aeryk around here."

"And what's your code name, Aeryk?" Joe stumbles slightly on Aeryk's name, unaccustomed to using proper names rather than titles.

"Monk." He smiles at Joe's look of bewilderment.

"I see." Joe replies. "So where you actually a monk before you became a F.Y. Officer?"

Aeryk laughs. "Oh hell no. I speak Japanese, Mandarin, and Cantonese fluently. The guys around here gave me the name as a joke, mostly because of my fascination with Asian culture." He motions to the scrolls.

"Well," Aeryk begins rising from his chair again. "Let's go find my partner. I'll show you around on the way. I have a pretty good idea where he is."

The two leave the office and head out in search of Brian.

"The only people's offices you might have to remember are these right here." He points to five offices down the hallway. "The furthest one at the end of the hall is the Chief's office. The one to the left is Jackie Skiffington's and the one across from it is Aaron Michaelson's." He turns to Joe. "Those two are partners, but all of us excluding the chief, tend to work together a lot." He then shows Joe the other offices. "The one to the left of Jackie's office is Jeff Lee's and the one across from his is Brent Peters' office."

"And what do you all do?" Joe asks.

"We all pretty much do the governments dirty work." Aeryk says and they continue their way past several other offices, and cubicles. "There are a lot of powerful criminals out there. Most of them are crime families, mafias."

"They're still around?" Joe asks, aghast.

Aeryk nods. "You'd find out soon enough that there are still a lot of things going on that you didn't even know about." Aeryk points out the copy room and the evidence room. "Here's where we keep mostly everything we confiscate, until it's picked up."

Joe peers into the large room filled with various artifacts and guns. "Wow, there are a lot of expensive looking things in here."

Aeryk nods. "A lot of things that most people would kill to get a hold of." He shuts the door and they head over to the elevator.

"So what made you want to join the F.Y.?" Aeryk asks as the elevator door whooshes shut.

Joe shrugs. "I guess I wanted to prove myself to other people." He turns and looks outside the window of the elevator and down into the lobby below.

The lobby of the F.Y. Police building looks like something you would expect to see in a mall. There are large sections cut out for large, thick bushes and trees. The white tiled floor is constantly polished until you can see your reflection. The high domed roof is made of class and is sectioned off into squares, separated by thin metal beams.

There are two separate towers of the F.Y. Police building. The tower Aeryk and his comrades' work is made for the special agents and the chief. The other tower, the upper half, has been set aside for the paper pushers, lawyers, accountants, human recourses. And the lower half has been converted into the training for the new recruits.

"When I was back home, I was teased about my height." Joe continued. "And the fact that I'm a lot smarter than most people."

"Most people are like that." Aeryk says looking down at the lobby. "They tend to ridicule things they don't understand, or fear."

Joe looks up at Aeryk. "Do you think they feared me?" He chuckles.

"Not so much as fear, Joe. They probably envied you."

Joe's eyes glimmer at the possibility that someone might actually envy him.

Never being a popular kid in school, Joe mostly remained secluded from the world around him. He delved into his studies as a form of escape from the harsh reality that he's different from most people.

The elevator slows to a stop on the main floor and the two walk out and head toward the training area.

"What are we doing here?" Joe asks.

"Looking for Brian."

"What would he be doing here?"

"You'll see." The two enter the gym of the training area and Aeryk looks around the mass of men and women sparring and lifting weights.

"If Brian has any passions in this world, it's his body." Aeryk jokes.

A female recruit notices Aeryk and salutes him. "What can I do for yah sir?"

Aeryk salutes back. "I'm looking for Officer Johnson."

The recruit looks back into the far corner of the gym and points. Aeryk spies a small circle of bodies and smirks.

"How utterly typical." Aeryk snorts. "Okay Joe, you're about to meet the glory that is Brian."

Joe gazes at Aeryk, bewildered as they make their back toward the far corner of the gym.

A couple recruits step aside for Aeryk and Joe revealing Brian, clad only in gray sweat pants and padded hand and foot gear, and a male recruit wearing the gray F.Y. Police recruit t-shirt and black sweat pants and the same padded gear Brian is wearing, sparring.

Aeryk sighs and rolls his eyes. "Brian, you know how much you're wasting company time?"

Brian turns his head and smiles at his partner. "Ask me if I care." He replies, and then turns back to the recruit. "I'm not going to go easy on you."

"Bring it on sir." The recruit taunts.

"Alright, if you insist." Brian saunters over to the recruit and unleashes a tornado of kicks and punches.

Within a mere five seconds, the recruit falls to the ground stunned.

The crowd, minus Aeryk, ooh and ah at Brian and applaud the impressive display. Brian brings out his most winning smile and attempts to act humble.

Aeryk was not impressed at all, but smiled as he spoke to his partner. "If you're finished Officer Johnson, we have work to do."

Brian picks up a towel from the floor beside the sparring mat and wipes the sweat from his bare, muscular chest. "You can tell me all about it in a minute."

Aeryk scowls. "I'll tell you about it now." He turns to Joe. "Can you wait here while I speak to Mister Johnson?" Joe nods in understanding.

"Ooh, looks like Officer Green is a little mad at his partner right now." Brian taunts, which brought a grin to Joe's face.

The two partners walk off into the men's locker room and Brian strips down his pants.

"Have you no shame?" Aeryk scoffs, not bothering to turn away.

"You live with me, you should know the answer to that." Brian casually says and swings a fresh tower over his broad shoulders, then saunters over to the showers. "So what's with the new kid?" He drops the towel on a nearby bench, then walks onto the tiled floor of the showers and activates it.

"He's the job I told you about." Aeryk walks over to the edge of the shower, crossing his arms.

"Oh great, we get to play babysitter." He runs his hands through his jet-black hair. "Couldn't Chief get Jackie or Aaron to do it?" He grabs a bar of soap and begins to lather his body, then turns to Aeryk.

Aeryk shakes his head. "You know how they are Brian. He doesn't want to scare the boy!"

Brian grimaces and raises his arm to wash the side of his chest, his arm muscles rippling with every movement.

Aeryk smirks. "There's no one in here to impress Brian, so you can stop with the flexing."

Brian smiles innocently. "It just happens Aeryk." He turns back into the warm water and lets the soap fall off his body, relishing in the sensation. "So what are we supposed to do?"

"The obvious, show him around town and get him used to things." Aeryk replies.

Brian shuts down the shower and Aeryk grabs the towel before Brian could reach it. "I want you to promise me something first."

"Come on Aeryk, it's cold. Give me the towel." He moans.

"Not until you promise me something." Aeryk holds the towel out of reach.

Brian instantly knew what Aeryk was talking about, and grinned mischievously.

"I mean it Brian, you're not sending that boy into the dump like you did the other one."

Brian laughs. "I'm surprised he actually went into the pile and swam around in the stuff." He stops laughing as he sees Aeryk glare at him. "Okay Aeryk, I won't do it this time. But you've got to admit it was funny last time."

Aeryk fails to hide back his grin and throws the towel at his friend. "Hurry and suit up will you? You're embarrassing me." He casts his eyes very briefly just below Brian's waist.

Brian smirks. "I've heard no complaints."

Aeryk arches a brow and turns on his heels. "That's because there hasn't been anyone to complain from what I hear." He forces a cough and manages to slide the word 'virgin' in.

Brian puffs up in protest. "I'm just waiting for the right person." He cries defensively.

Aeryk just waves back at Brian. "Sure, sure. I'll see you outside."

After a short wait, Brian walks out of the locker room and instantly receives stares of admiration from the women recruits. Brian grins slightly, but ignores them, and heads out of the gym with Aeryk and Joe.

"So, what's your name?" Brian says.

"Joe, sir." He stops his salute when Aeryk gives him a sharp glance.

Brian turns to Aeryk. "What have you told him about me?"

Aeryk looks at him with big blue/green eyes. "Nothing that isn't the truth." He smirks.

Brian's eyes narrow slightly and he goes after Aeryk's soft spot, his hair. He brushes his hands through Aeryk's perfect brown hair, and is rewarded with a cry of outrage.

Brian fends off Aeryk by stiff-arming him on the head. He then turns to Joe and smiles simply. "Aeryk has this habit of telling people false things about me, so if you want the real truth just come to me. I'll set you straight." He winks and laughs at Aeryk.

Aeryk stops attempting to tear out Brian's throat and straightens out his hair. "Do that again and I'll kill you." He snaps.

Joe tries to settle the situation by changing the subject. "So what's your code name, Brian?"

"Demon" He announces proudly.

"Ogre!" Aeryk snaps back. "Which is precisely what you are."

Brian turns on his partner, grinning from ear to ear. "Is that so?" He quickly lands a light smack across Aeryk's cheek.

This is a game both Aeryk and Brian do to each other that annoys both of them to no end. But whoever initiates it, usually has the most amount of fun.

Aeryk lets out an annoyed gasp and he quickly sends back another smack. "Stop it."

"No!" Brian sends another smack, just ahead of Aeryk's attempt to block it. "Callin' me an Ogre."

"That's cuz you are!" He sends another smack, but is blocked by Brian. He then quickly sends another smack, this time with success, on Brian's other cheek.

This game goes on for some time, with Joe staring at the two with total disbelief, until a female officer saunters up, smiling.

"Come on ladies, no need to make fools of yourselves in front of the recruit."

Brian grabs both of Aeryk's wrists and smiles at the woman. "Hi Jackie." He says. "How's it shakin'?"

"Boring as ever." She casts an amused glance at Aeryk. "You know this will raise questions about you two."

At those words Brian releases Aeryk's wrists. "Stop it Jackie." He says.

Aeryk rubs his face and casts an irritated look at Brian. "Anyway, Jackie this is Joe Campbell, he's a new recruit."

Jackie and Joe shake hands. "So, you guys showing him around?" Jackie asks and Aeryk nods. "Guess Chief doesn't trust Aaron and I huh?"

Aeryk smirks. "He would rather for our recruits to come back sane and intact."

Jackie laughs and swings a pair of boxing gloves over her slight shoulders. "I need to go work out before it gets too dark. I'll catch yah later okay?" She waves and dashes off toward the gym.

"That's Jackie?" Joe gasps, which results in laughs from both Aeryk and Brian. "What's so funny?" He asks.

Jackie is the self-proclaimed, beauty of the F.Y. Police. With her soft blonde hair and deep blue eyes, she has broken many a hearts within the Force. But beneath that fair façade is a fierce Brazilian kickboxing champion. Her slim body and fluid motions have given her the code name Willow.

"Nothing, it's just that everybody who meets Jackie gives the same response." Brian says. "Come on, we better head out soon."

The group climb into the patrol car, a simple design made for speed and sudden stops.

Brian pulls down the door of the driver's side and begins to press a series of buttons.

"Wow!" Joe exclaims. "Is this the Z-3200?"

Aeryk looks back at Joe. "Yeah, how'd you know?"

"Awesome! This thing hauls like I've never seen. Can this thing really fly?"

Brian smirks into the rearview mirror. "I've never tried before, maybe we should."

Aeryk glares at Brian. "Don't you dare, you're not licensed to…"

"Oh shut up Aeryk," Brian groans exasperated. "Learn to have a little fun."

At that, Brian slams his foot onto the accelerator pad and the car screams out of the garage and into the city, nearly slamming into innocent people along the way.

Joe leans forward and lets out a whoop. "Man this car is awesome!"

Brian, taking Joe's words as ones of encouragement, forces the car to go even faster. Despite Aeryk's protest, Brian inserts his favorite CD into the player and selects a song, Sin Wagon by the Dixie Chicks.

Aeryk rolls his eyes and surrenders to Brian's masculine urges and remains motionless as Brian swerves in and out of traffic, all the while Joe is in the back egging Brian on.

As Brian's favorite chorus comes up, he leans over to Aeryk and belts out singing...

Praise the Lord and pass the ammunition

Need a lil' bit more of that twelve ounce nutrition

One more helpin' of what I've been havin'

I'm takin' my turn on the Sin Wagon

He laughs as Aeryk makes a face at him and returns his attention to the road.

After a short while, Aeryk orders for Brian to slow down and do his job. Brian reluctantly agrees, much to Joe's disappointment.

"You're no fun Aeryk." Brian taunts.

Joe decides to be bold and join in. "Yeah Aeryk, Brian's a good driver."

Aeryk casts a nasty glance at Brian daring for him to continue.

"Uh-oh, I think we should stop Joe." Brian says, and then starts the tour of the city.

Just as the streetlights were blinking to life, Brian pulls the car into the garage and they all get out.

"Maybe next time I'll get this baby to really fly." Brian says to Joe.

Joe smiles widely. "That'd be awesome." He cries, and then looks at his watch. "Oops, I need to get going. My mom's throwing a party for me tonight."

Brian smirks. "Right on, I'll see you tomorrow."

Joe waves to Aeryk and Brian as he runs off to his own car.

"He's a nice enough kid." Brian says as he and Aeryk walk off toward Aeryk's car. "Where do you think Chief is gonna put him?"

Aeryk shrugs. "Who knows? All I know is, I wanna get home and take a good shower, and eat."

The two reach Aeryk's VW Jetta Triennium and drop into the soft black leather seats.

Aeryk frowns as he notices a thin layer of dirt forming on the windows of his precious car. "Remind me to clean this thing when we get home tonight okay?" He starts the ignition to the car and proceeds to drive home.

As they leave the garage the Opti-phone, a telephone that's connected to a small monitor on the dash, rings and Brian activates the phone and turns on the monitor.

The picture of an older woman with short brown hair and soft brown eyes appears. "Brian!" The woman frowns. "I've been trying to get a hold of you all day. Where have you been?"

Brian rolls his eyes. "I'm sorry mom, but I have work to do too, yah know?"

Brian's mom rolls her eyes. "Don't lie to me, I know what a lazy slob you are." She turns to Aeryk as he laughs. "How are you Aeryk?"

"Just fine Mrs. Johnson. What's up?"

"Actually, I called to remind Brian that it's his father's fiftieth birthday tomorrow." She turns a sharp gaze at her son. "I'm expecting you to be here."

Brian lets out a long sigh. "Of course mom, I'll be there."

"You're free to come too if you want Aeryk, you're part of the family too yah know." She smiles warmly.

Aeryk smiles back. "Thank you Mrs. Johnson."

"And stop calling me that." She playfully scorns. "It makes me sound older than I am. Call me Barbara."

"Okay mom, gotta go now. I'll see you tomorrow." Brian says.

Barbara smiles. "Okay Brian, I love you. Bye."

"Love you too, mom." He says quickly and shuts off the Opti-phone and leans back casually in the seats.

"You forgot about the birthday didn't you?" Aeryk asks as he turns the corner.

"No, I just didn't want to go." Brian replies with a sigh.

"Why's that?"

"My dad's starting to bug me about getting married and all that crap." He shrugs. "It gets old."

"You're only twenty-three, Brian. You have plenty of time."

"Tell that to my father. Beside, I don't have any real desire to settle down right now. What with my career and all with F.Y.; I kinda like my life the way it is."

Aeryk nods in agreement, well partial agreement anyway.

Aeryk and Brian have been best friends ever since they met each other at F.Y. three years ago. Brian is only a couple more years older than Aeryk, but Aeryk is obviously the more mature one of the two.

The perfect example of their clash of personalities lies within their rooms. Aeryk's room is kept in pristine order, with every bit of class he could muster. It's finely decorated, much like his office, with Asian art. He rests on a futon mattress kept in the center of the room covered by soft black silk sheets and a white down comforter for the cold season. A few white paper lanterns he bought while on a trip to Japan softly light his room.

Brian's room, on the other hand, looks like ground zero. His walls are generally bare of any decoration, with the exception of a couple posters he bought while going to random concerts with his other friends. His bed, if it could be found under a mountain of clothes, is rarely if ever made. The only light Brian allows in the room is the sunlight, and when that's gone, it's dark and frightening in there.

Brian and Aeryk, at one time, were involved in a relationship with two other women, both friends. After a time, though, things between them just whispered away and they all eventually broke up.

Since then both of them haven't been involved in a relationship. Brian states that being in a relationship will "cramp his style" and insists that having a woman tag along will only ruin his fun.

Aeryk, though, has another reason. He just can't seem to find himself attracted to women anymore.

"Hey, aren't you listening to me?" Brian snaps.

Aeryk wakes out of his reverie. "What? Oh, I'm sorry."

Brian rolls his eyes. "Never mind, I was just telling you that there's this new club that's opened downtown and I wanted to go check it out. Wanna go?"

Aeryk instantly brightens to the idea. "Right on, sounds cool."

Brian smirks. "Good, I wanna get nice and lit tonight too."

Aeryk scowls. "Is that the only reason you go out?"

"I like to dance too, though you make fun of me all the time."

Aeryk laughs. "That's because you've got no rhythm boy!"

"Yeah, yeah shut up and drive." Brian grumbles.

Aeryk quickly throws off his shoes and place them neatly in the closet and walks down the hall to grab a towel. "I'm expecting something eatable tonight Brian." He yells.

"You'll eat what I give you!" Brian retorts from the kitchen.

Aeryk walks back into his bedroom, passing Brian's on the way and frowning at the mess he knows is inside, and shuts the door slightly.

He lets out a relieved sigh as he pulls off his belt. "Man, this thing is heavy." He moans as he drops the belt onto his futon, resulting is soft clanking of metal. He then pulls off his shirt, pants, and under garments before wrapping the towel around his waist.

He turns and looks himself in his mirror at the corner of the room. While he is nowhere near as big as Brian, Aeryk has managed to maintain a fair amount of muscle on his thin body. His soft brown hair, which he treasures above most things, is parted down the middle. His skin is a soft tan color, due to him being in the sun more often that he would care for. Brian insisted that he join him at the beach nearly every moment they had free.

Aeryk lets out a sigh and leans in closer to the mirror to check his eye color. "Yup, blue." He mutters. Aeryk has inherited a genetic 'defect' where his eye color changes rapidly due to his mood. The greener his eyes, the brighter his mood and the more bluer, the more sad or angrier he is.

"Maybe me dancing tonight will help me keep my mind off of things for a while." He nods then leaves his room to take his, much needed, shower.

The lights of the bathroom flicker on as Aeryk enters the room and he calls out the simple order for the shower to start.

As the shower starts, Aeryk pulls off his towel and places his hand under the water to test the temperature. When the water is to his liking he slowly walks in and pulls the curtain closed and absorbs the warmth.

He lets out a long sigh as he mind begins to wander. The only reason he hates showers is because it's the only time when he's allowed to think, something he rather not do. When Aeryk thinks, he thinks of when he was sixteen.

Aeryk jumps up to his house, practically beside himself with joy. He swings open the door yelling for his parents to tell him the good news.

"Ma! I got my license!" He calls up the stairs of his large two-story house.

"That's wonderful Aeryk." She calls walking around the corner. "Your father's out in the back mowing the lawn right now. You can tell him when he's finished."

The two walk into the kitchen and Aeryk's mother pours herself a glass of water. "It's a warm day isn't it?"

"Yeah." Aeryk responds, wishing to talk about his accomplishment rather than the weather.

Aeryk's mother turns and smiles. She looks at her eldest son with bursting pride. Though physically, he was more like his father, he definitely has her smiling, bright eyes and soft demeanor.

"So," She begins. "Tell me how it went." She sits across on the long bench at the dinner table.

The benches quickly replaced chairs as the Green household has five children and their parents.

"Well, they first had me try to parallel park. I totally bombed on that part, but with everything else I did just fine."

"That's wonderful Aeryk." His mother says rising just as her youngest daughter and namesake, Michelle, bolts into the room screaming at the top of her lungs.

"Michelle," Her mother starts. "What's the matter?"

"They won't let me play with them." The nine year old scowls.

Ryan, the second eldest boy, calls up from down the stairs. "Nah-uh! We're just in the middle of the game and we can't start over, or we'll loose everything."

Aeryk's mother rolls her eyes and lets out a sigh then turns to Michelle. "Once they're finished you can have your turn, alright?"

Aeryk's thoughts are cut short when Brian begins to pound on the door. "What are you doing in there?" He calls.

Aeryk suddenly realizes that the water has begun to cool with over use and he quickly turns off the shower. "I'm sorry, I lost track of time." He says.

"Yeah, well, hurry up! Dinner's almost ready." Brian says and walks down the hall.

Aeryk steps out of the shower and begins to dry himself. He looks up at the bathroom mirror and wipes away the mist with his hands. "Why is it so hard to forget?" He whispers to his reflection.

When no answer came, he finishes drying himself off and wraps the towel around his waist again. He then leaves the bathroom and heads toward his bedroom to "whore out" as the saying goes.

Basically, "whoring out" means to find the most tight fitting outfit possible, leaving very little to the imagination about ones body. Aeryk doesn't normally follow that tradition, but something told him to go all out tonight. He wanted nothing but to have fun with his friend, and forget.

He opens his closet and sifts through the large amount of shirts and pants to search for the perfect outfit.

He quickly finds a black, nylon t-shirt that always fits real tight on him accenting his upper body perfectly. He throws the shirt onto his futon and searches for his off white cargo pants. He finds his favorite pair of clubbing pants and throws them off his futon. Aeryk, then, kneels down and picks out a new pair of shoes he bought recently for just such and occasion. The shoes are a shiny black color with thick heels and soles, making them seem like boots. The back heels of the boots have three long, polished metal beams that wrap about the heel in a 'U' shape.

"Aeryk!" Brian bellows. "Get your butt out here and eat!"

"I'll be right there." Aeryk calls back. He then grabs a pair of sweats and a tank top to wear before they get ready to leave. Aeryk hates having to wear ill-fitting clothes for too long.

He leaves his room and pads down the hallway, barefooted, and meets Brian, who's wearing his lounging ensemble of a t-shirt and boxers, in the kitchen.

"About damn time." He mutters. "What were you doing in there, eh?"

Aeryk frowns. "Nothing your perverted mind can come up with. What's for dinner?"

"You're favorite of course." He grins. "Mac 'n Cheese!"

Aeryk smiles faintly as his, indeed favorite food in the entire world, is announced as dinner. "Sounds great." He says lowly.

Brian's grin fades. "What's the matter with you?" He asks, concerned. "You don't seem your usual self today."

"I've got a lot on my mind today." Aeryk murmurs as he walks over to the table and sits to eat his plate of Mac 'n Cheese.

"Wanna talk about it?" Brian asks sitting across from Aeryk.

"Nah," Aeryk says. "Same ol' shit yah know?" He picks up his fork and starts eating.

Brian nods. "I almost forgot, tomorrow is the anniversary huh?" Aeryk remains silent and continues to eat. "If you don't want to, you don't have to come with me to my dad's party. I can always meet you at the cemetery later."

Despite his dark mood, Aeryk smiles. "No, it's okay. I think it's time for me to try and move on. I think five years of mourning is more than enough."

"You sure buddy?" He asks.

Aeryk pauses as Brian calls him that. He looks up to his friend wide eyed. "You haven't called me that in a while."

"I haven't?" Brian asks taking a healthy bite. "That's strange, wonder why I stopped." He shrugs it off. "Anyway, eat up. Gotta get some energy in yah for tonight."

Aeryk continues to eat, and then something hit him. "Damn, I need to clean the car." He says rising.

Brian glares at him. "Sit down Aeryk and let the A.C.C. take care of it."

A.C.C. simply stands for Automatic Car Cleaner. They are a luxury placed in homes of those who are fairly well to do.

"I'd feel a lot better if I handled it myself." Aeryk complains sitting.

"I think you're precious car can handle one night without you." Brian teases.

"Ass." Aeryk snarls.

Brian laughs. "Now there's a word you haven't used on me for a while."

While Brian tends to be on the more gentle side of the 'pet-names', Aeryk usually is the one to use more abusive terms for his best friend, though he rarely means any of it.

"But you're usually more colorful with the name calling, bud." Brian says, smirking.

"Give me a minute and I'll think of something." Aeryk retorts, grinning back.

"I'm sure you will." Brian says. "Alright, enough talking. I'll start the A.C.C. and you keep on eating." He orders as he rises from his table to start the A.C.C. from the control panel on the side of the front door.

After the monotone voice confirms Brian's specifications he returns to the table and his meal.

"So when did you want to leave for the club?" Aeryk asks.

"It opens at, I think, ten." Brian responds. "But I've heard that it gets packed real quick, so I wanna get in line early."

Aeryk nods and continues to eat at his meal.

Brian, on the other hand, inhaled his food like a starved lion and rises to put his plate and fork in the dishwasher. "You're a slow eater."

"You're a pig!" Aeryk shoots back. "Did you even taste your food?"

"Yup, tasted like Mac 'n Cheese." He jokes. "Anyway, I'm going to get ready." He walks off into his pit of a room and vanishes into the darkness.

Aeryk smirks and continues to finish up with his meal. He nearly spits out his food when he hears a loud bang and a curse boom out from Brian's deep voice.

For all the faults Aeryk may see in Brian, he would never want to change his best friend. He's grown accustomed to Brian's odd mannerisms and finds them very enduring and almost charming. His cocky smile and perverse sense of humor is what Aeryk likes best in Brian. It keeps him in check and more often than not brings him out of his darker moods. Aeryk smiles to himself. Yes, Aeryk is certain that he loves Brian in all aspects of friendship.

Aeryk rises from the table and places his empty plate and fork inside the dishwasher. He then walks down to his room and proceeds to get ready for the evening.

"Hey Aeryk!" Brian calls from the bathroom. "I'm borrowing some of your gel alright. I can't seem to find mine."

"And should I be surprised?" Aeryk mutters lowly. "Alright," He calls out. "Just don't use too much."

Brian calls out his thanks and Aeryk puts on a clean set of undergarments, minus a t-shirt, and pulls on his pants. He finds a thick, solid black leather belt and wraps it around his waist and ties it up.

He then puts on his shoes, ties them up, and heads out to the bathroom. The moment he turns the corner he sees Brian wearing a striking outfit consisting of a deep red t-shirt, nylon like Aeryk's, and a pair of black pleated dress pants and black polished, dress shoes.

He looks in the mirror one last time as he finishes styling his fierce black hair into the Caesar style, a hairstyle from a while ago that is just coming back.

Aeryk's body begins to tingle oddly as he watches Brian prepare himself. His eyes trail to Brian's large, muscular arms for a moment before he tears them away.

Wait a second Aeryk! What was that? He says to himself. Well, whatever it was, stop it. He quickly regroups, as Brian looks at him, worried.

"What is it?" Aeryk asks.

"Does my hair look alright?" Brian replies.

Aeryk's eyes widen. Since when have you cared about how you looked? "Yeah, it looks great." He smiles slightly. "Now get out of my way. I need to get ready."

Brian smiles as he makes way for Aeryk and leaves the bathroom.

Aeryk applies some fresh deodorant and puts on his shirt. He studies himself in the mirror for a moment then wets his hair to style it.

"Crap! It's almost nine." Brian calls from the living room. "Hurry!"

"Shut up!" Aeryk jokes. "I'm almost done." He quickly styles his hair and brushes his teeth. Man, that boy is pushy. Good thing I can kick his ass. He smirks and takes out the bottle of mouth wash.

"Aeryk, it's time to go!" Brian yells. "You're like a frickin' girl." He finishes, muttering.

Aeryk spits out the mouth wash irritably. "Don't get your panties in a bunch Brian, I'm coming." Aeryk gives himself one last look and rushes to his room. "Just a second, I need to grab a couple things.

"Fine, I'll meet you downstairs."

Aeryk reaches his room and grabs a small box from his desk and pulls out a thin silver ring and a chain linked silver necklace and puts them on, mementos from his father.

Aeryk, refusing to think about his past, rushes out of this room to meet the impatient Brian.

Location: Blue Dragon Club

Aeryk and Brian, much to their surprise, find a parking space across the street from the Blue Dragon Club. Brian parks his 3019 red, his favorite color, Porsche and the two walk over to the already long line.

"Crap." Brian moans, and then shrugs it off. "Oh well, at least it isn't raining or anything."

"Oy! Johnson, Green!" A loud British voice calls from toward the front of the line. "Get your bloody arses down 'ere!"

Brian and Aeryk look down and grin as they recognize a shock of red hair. Aaron, along with Jackie, Jeff, and Brent, are busy waving them down.

After a bit of pushing, apologies, and envious looks, Brian and Aeryk meet up with their comrades.

"Is that your car?" Aaron asks pointing to the Porsche and Brian nods. "How did you afford that?"

"Don't be stupid Aaron," Jackie says. "Mumzy and Daddums paid for it." She turns to Brian with a wicked smile.

"'Ave you been 'olding out on us all this time Johnson?" Aaron peers at Brian suspiciously. "In that case you're paying for us tonight."

"What?" Brian cries. "Wait a second, I never said I was rich. It's my parents who are rich."

Aeryk decides to stand up for his friend. "He's tellin' the truth Aaron, his parents gave him the car as a gift."

Aaron and Jackie exchanged amused glances and they both shrug. "Alright," Aaron continues. "Looks like we're next."

Aaron transferred to the F.Y. Police just a year ago, from a British agency somewhat like the F.Y. Police. Just a few inches taller than Aeryk, about five foot nine, Aaron has a blaze of red wavy hair and light blue eyes.

He is the explosives specialist of the F.Y. Police and lives up, almost whole heartily, to the stereotype of being a wild child in the field. A very casual smoker, Aaron has a thing for fire and has been known to be tinkering with weaponry trying to add a flamethrower to nearly every weapon he has. Derryk decided to appease Aaron's appetite for the flame by ordering him his own Rekka 2-36gt, a flamethrower with capabilities of creating intense, white-hot flames.

Derryk made the horrible mistake of placing him with his partner, Jackie. Those two have been known to create the most obscene of havocs around the city by choosing fights and almost outright ordering a known felon to start a car chase.

The two other men waiting in the line, Jeff Lee and Brent Peters are also partners, though not as strange as Aeryk and Brian or as crazy as Jackie and Aaron.

Jeff has a great knowledge of espionage techniques and has gone under many investigations using his knowledge, which has given him the name Shadow. And, like a shadow, he's always around but never noticed. Many a crime rings have crumbled under his watch and many agencies around the world have attempted to pull Jeff out of the F.Y. Police, but with no success.

Like Brian he has straight black hair, kept short and misty gray eyes. He has been involved with the force longer than any other of his comrades. He also has a keen interest with anything mythological.

Brent Peters, the tallest of the bunch, is the F.Y.'s resident medical doctor, giving him the Code Name Doc. He has incredible knowledge of medicines both man made and natural.

Before he came to the F.Y. he was a doctor in a local hospital during the great earthquake. And seeing all the suffering that he was mostly unable to ease, as well as his now deceased wife, Brent has gone under much emotional stress. As a result, he speaks very little.

With the stress of loosing his wife, Brent left the medical profession and went into a state of deep depression. His wife, Shannon, was his life and by loosing her, he lost a great part of him. A friend of his, a self proclaimed medium to the other world, attempted to prove to Brent that she could speak with Shannon. With great reluctance, he allowed his friend to try, but the only success she has was infuriating Brent with an elaborate mockery of his love for Shannon.

But something about the other world sparked something in Brent's tortured mind and he began studying the occult and anything relating to the other world. After several years of attempting to find his wife, he ceased his studies and went to the F.Y. Police in hopes of preventing people loosing their loved ones. He could never go back to the medical profession again.

"So how did you guys find out about this place?" Brian asks.

"We arrested a couple dealers across the street actually." Jackie says, pausing a moment to show the bouncer, a gorilla of a man, her ID and he let her in.

She waited until the rest of them were let in and she continued. "We saw a sign saying this place was about to open and we thought we'd check it out."

"And you even got Jeff and Brent to go?" Aeryk asks.

"Hey, we know how to have fun to yah know?" Jeff says defensively. "Isn't that right Brent?" Brent nods, his face grim. "See?"

"Come on Brent!" Brian says reaching up and playfully massages Brent's burly shoulders. "Lighten up a little. This a club, we're supposed to have fun!"

Brent looks back at Brian and smiles slightly, and nods.

"That's my man!" Brian pats Brent on the back as they enter the dimly lit club.

As they enter the club they are instantly assaulted by loud Techno beats. There is already a large group of men and women dancing wildly on the vast dance floor, accompanied by multicolored beams of light and the occasionally whoosh of mist.

To the immediate left of the dance floor is a grand bar, the back wall filled with every type of alcohol. Seeing this, Brian lets out a whoop of approval and makes his way with Jackie and Aaron toward the bar. Also, at the back end of the club are several pool tables, several restrooms, and a single door marked 'Employees Only'.

"So how did your mission go?" Aeryk asks Jeff, yelling over the loud music.

"It was boring." Jeff replies. "The whole operation was a joke. The guy we were trying to get was a coke dealer. We sent in one of our guys to make the deal, and once that was done we found out that somebody tipped him off that we'd be there and he ended up bringing flour with him!"

Aeryk laughs loudly. "So what happened to the dealer?"

"We could only keep him over night." Jeff says grimly. "He didn't have any coke, so the only thing we had him on was the fact that he's a known dealer."

"That sucks." Aeryk sympathizes. "So what are you gonna do?"

"Brent and I are gonna play some pool. We both hate to dance."

Aeryk smirks. "Alright, I'll catch you guys later? Maybe get in a few drinks?"

Jeff nods his approval and waves goodbye to Aeryk as he walks off toward the dance floor.

Another passion in Aeryk's life is dancing. To him, there is no other perfect way to escape the world and let ones spirit soar. He pauses a moment at the top stairs leading down to the floor and sees several "Candy Ravers" twirling around in bizarre movements accompanied by colored glow sticks, a fad that never died out. He also notices several men dancing rather close to their female partners. A grin teases his mouth as Aeryk spies a couple of men dancing with other men, also women with women.

Hah, I guess this place is a Bi club. Aeryk thinks to himself. Aeryk calls any club that attracts both straight and gay clientele, a 'Bi club'.

Aeryk takes in a deep breath and lets it out slowly. "Alright Aeryk, you came here to have fun and forget. So get goin'!" He mutters to himself and makes his way down to the floor.

At that moment a song ends and the light, bass filled, beat of another song begins. The constant pounding of the bass reminded Aeryk of a heartbeat, and he closes his eyes and grins slightly as the intoxicating music swarms over his body.

In any normal circumstances, the occasional bump of a large sweaty body would irritate Aeryk, but not tonight. Tonight Aeryk was allowing himself to drift into the endless void of dance and music. He forces his mind to shut down and forget everything.

The image of his brothers Ryan, Justin, and Aaron, and his sister Michelle as he last saw them fades away as if they were a dream. The memory of his parents celebrating their twenty-fifth anniversary and the party his aunts and uncles threw vanishes. The sight of thirty-seven graves all placed together, each having an aunt, uncle, brother, sister, cousin, nephew, niece, grandparent, grandchild; every member of Aeryk's family, dead, that vision, too, fades into nothingness. And then the thoughts of Brian. No, Aeryk tells himself. Not tonight. Tonight is my chance to escape, and I'm going to use it.

And Aeryk does use his night. He dances, like a ghost would move. His arms float around his body in graceful pattern. His feet take a life of their own, and the sensation of floating in air consumes Aeryk. For this is his world, a world of lights, dancing, and music. A world with no problems or loss. This is a world where all can come together and rejoice in their presence. This is Aeryk's world, and Aeryk's night.

Continued in Part 2

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