Running footsteps of horses along with the running footsteps of men echoed down the empty streets of what was once Ikebukuro. Bitter, cold air swept through the destroyed city carrying the voices of yelling men on horseback, hot in pursuit of men and women on foot that were soon to be captured. The moon illuminated the devastated streets, lighting up every fallen light pole and every massive crack in the road. The group on the ground easily maneuvered around these obstacles while the horses had more trouble. A couple of the horses slightly stumbled on debri, slowing them down or throwing their rider while others refused to jump some of the deep crevices in the middle of the road; unwilling to risk falling in them.

The people who had once resided in this bustling city were fearless, taking huge chances as they flew over the crevices and debris without hesitation. The timespan of just two weeks had made them this way; willing to risk everything in order to not be captured by the Defense. Their efforts, in the end, were futile as one by one the people grew tired, lacking the energy to keep their pace. There were only a handful left now and they were tiring quickly, their endurance nothing compared to a horse's.

In the front of the pack was a raven haired man in all black, his fur-lined jacket whipping in the wind as he forced his body to keep up it's pace. The male cursed breathlessly at his luck as they reached a flat expanse of pavement, allowing the horses to gain on them. He'd only been passing through this group's camping area when a band of Sweepers had come by. He was the first to break out into a run and the others, noticing him zip by, started to follow him. The raven-haired man would have easily slipped away, wouldn't have had to run far to get out of sight, had the others not decided to follow him. The raven felt his pace begin to slow as his breath came out in gasps. He needed to find a way to slip into the shadows, but with the people behind the informant following him wherever he went, it was a nearly hopeless cause.

Quickly the informant came up with an idea, his years of running from Shizou allowing him to make decisions even under pressure. Using the last of his energy to break out into a hard sprint, the male took a sharp turn to the left directly down a dead-end alley. Sure enough the others followed, but this time way further behind due to their legs slowing and the suddenness of the change in direction. Running to nearly the end of the tight alley, the raven kicked off the wall to the right of him and when he was pushed to the left, he kicked off the wall on the other side over and over until he had made his way up the walls to the rooftop. The informant pulled himself onto the ledge of the tall building and collapsed onto his back on the roof-top, wails of despair calling up after him as his chest heaved. Below the raven could hear the sobs and cries from the people being captured by the Sweepers, getting steadily louder as the people succumbed to hysteria.

The Sweepers were anything but civil about the whole thing. They were brutal, punching and kicking the captured if they resisted even a tiny bit. If the prisoners said anything that insulted them, they would beat them badly enough that the captured man or woman could no longer walk. You were completely finished then. When you couldn't walk, you were put down as if you were a horse with a broken leg. At that point you're useless to their cause. Izaya closed his eyes as he heard the noises below die down and the clomps of horse hooves pound away back to the cattle truck they transported their prisoners in. Two weeks into World War lll and everything was going to hell.

The Defense was the combined army of every country on the continent of Asia, including Japan. The war had forced them to unite against Europe and the Americas and they had been holding their own easily do to their huge numbers until things started to go bad. The presence of newly-developed weapons entered the playing field, turning the tables completely. The combined countries had extended their weaponry far from atomic bombs, not wanting to destroy the limited resources they were fighting over, and instead turned to human and animal experimentation. They turned normal humans and animals into products of war, unleashing new beasts onto the battlefield every time the combined countries clashed. In an attempt to keep the odds even, the Defense began to capture their own citizens, experimenting on them and making their own spliced weapons. No one would willingly offer themselves up to have their bodies messed with in any way the Defense saw fit, so capturing them this way was how it had to be done.

Izaya sighed as he rolled over on his stomach, looking down at the empty city streets. There was an eerie silence now, the usual sounds of cars and people moving to and fro are now distant memories even though it hadn't been that long ago since everything was normal. The raven-haired male had been alone since this all started. He'd been out wandering the streets when planes began to slam into the sides of buildings and explosions shook the ground where terrorists threw grenades and shot bazookas at pedestrians and small shops. The raven had stood there in shock for a few long moments along with everyone else until he forced himself into action. His top priority was getting to his apartment to gather everything he could before he went into hiding.

The streets had been in absolute chaos. Everyone was screaming and trampling one another as terrorists fired automatic guns into the crowds. As if he had been more liquid than an actual person, Izaya had slipped through the panicking people easily. Keeping himself calm, the informant managed to make it to his apartment building. The raven-haired male had heard about terrorist attacks on other cities and had gotten supplies packed just in case an attack hit here. Izaya slipped up today though and decided to spend his day prowling the streets and observing his beloved humans.

Relief had washed over the informant as he made a mad dash to the front doors of the lobby to his apartment building along with many others who had the same idea as him: To gather some belongings and be on their way. Before anyone had reached them though, someone threw a grenade through an open window on the second floor. Izaya's sharp eyes had caught the movement and he immediately turned and ran the other way while more grenades were being thrown into windows higher up via a grenade launcher. The raven hadn't gotten too far from the building he was so desperately trying to get away from due to the river of people trying to get into the place. Izaya was beginning to panic a little as he heard the first explosion go off followed by a series of others.

Screams of terror filled the air as the concession of explosions kept coming, everyone who had made it inside the building were surely being blown to bits by now and the ones who had been on their way to it had turned the other way as a deafening and sickening sound came from the tall building. Izaya knew immediately that it was coming down as the building groaned in what was seemingly pain as it hunched over threateningly. Instead of running with the flow of the people the raven-haired informant ran to the right, shoving his way through the people running in a straight path away from the building. By the time he'd gotten to a safe distance away from the falling structure, it was already coming down and many people were unable to get away in time to avoid it. Izaya forced himself to tear his eyes away from the scene as screams filled the air, running in the direction he'd been running before. He had no clue where to go now. He couldn't hide on a rooftop due to the chance it'd come down, he couldn't hide out in a secluded building either. That ruled out a lot of Izaya's choices. He needed to think of something soon though, eventually running around in the open was going to get him killed.

The informant turned down a quiet alley, far from the screams and popping of gunshots, and backed himself into the darkest corner of it to stop and think for a moment. Being in a closed-off space wasn't a really good idea, but the sounds of guns going off weren't anywhere near here yet and only a handful of people ran by every now and them. Izaya thought about hiding out in a basement, but was terrified of the thought of getting stuck down there if the building connected to the basement came down. The raven explored other options as he heard the gunshots become closer and closer. Finally the male's gaze rested on the recycling dumpster beside him. An idea popped into the raven's head as he went up to the bin and lifted the lid. It was hardly filled with anything and Izaya was confused for a moment until he realized today was trash day. Carefully he climbed into the metal bin and pulled the lid down over it. It would be a bad situation if the buildings on either side of him came down, but this was the safest choice. He'd easily be able to make a run of it if it came to that.

The raven ended up spending the night in the blue bin as he listened for the noises outside to cease. At some point during the night, the Japanese military had showed up to start a counter-attack and the small battle that took place afterwards ended by the early hours of the morning. To be sure that everything had settled down, Izaya had stayed where he was until nearly noon. He then spent the day gathering supplies, finding a spot to set up a small living space, and looking over the damage that had been done on his city. There was still a lot of people left and many were beginning to set up camps here and there as their confidence grew. Soon the city was bustling in a different kind of way. People could be heard again, but traffic was nonexistent.

Three days after the terrorist attack though, the Sweepers began rolling in. No one would have thought them to be up to no good and might have gone with them willingly had they not come violently; on horseback and with ropes, stun guns, and nets. They attacked camps and began to hunt the surviving people like animals. Though many were captured during the past two weeks, many people still remained here. They learned quickly and took themselves to hiding and making themselves harder to find. However, everyday their numbers decreased consistently. Having to go out for food and water was one of the leading reasons people wound up captured.

Izaya stretched his aching muscles as he looked for a way to climb down from the roof he was on. The coast had to be clear now and he should get back to his living space soon if he wanted to insure that no one tried to steal his supplies. Today had been Izaya's first day where he didn't have anything to do. He'd spent these last two weeks gathering supplies and staking out a good place to live. He spent several hours a day looking for spots in a quiet corner of the city and had to change his location a total of three times due to camps getting too close. Wherever the camps went, the Sweepers followed. It was beyond Izaya as to why everyone kept moving in big groups when it made you stand out, but at least the majority of the people still here had figured it out already.

The informant let out a grunt as he finally landed on the pavement after carefully making his way down from the roof. His living space was clear across town and it would be a long walk there. Moving about in the city took longer than usual now. Groups here were constantly warring and stealing from one another due to resources being hard to find. Some groups had even established borders and crossing them would definitely spell a fight if you carelessly just walked through their claimed land. Izaya knew two groups in particular that consisted only of gang members and delinquents. Yes they stole and warred like everyone else, but they took it a step further. Seemingly, their only purpose was to target lone men and women and torment them. They raped some and beat others, but they were very fond of beating and then raping the majority of people they came across. To survive here you definitely needed a group, but Izaya couldn't take that chance. He didn't know who to trust at the moment or if it was even worth possibly being caught.

He decided against a group in the end. Izaya was fairly good at protecting himself against the troublemakers, especially since he knew all about them. Everyone was a lot less intimidating when you knew their face and personality like the back of your hand. Still he knew well enough to stay out of the way and not to play his usual games if he hoped to stay alive and uncaptured. The moon was now at it's highest point in the sky and Izaya could only guess that it was late at night at this point. Making sure his footsteps didn't make any noise, the raven haired male walked towards the open end of the alleyway. Peeking his head out, he looked from left to right. The informant listened hard for any sounds, for all he knew someone could be after him. Afterall, Izaya didn't have a good reputation among the people of this city.

When he heard nothing, the informant quickly jogged across the wide street straight ahead and back into the shadows the buildings provided him. Making his way through the alleys he knew just as well as the people that used to reside in the city, Izaya slunk his way toward his living space. Along the way he heard sounds of life. A low bustling could be heard among the shadows and under the cover of night. People tended to be more active around this time and he could clearly hear people laughing, talking, and the sound of cans being opened. Izaya would be lying if he said he didn't miss human contact. The sounds of life still happening even in the midst of all this was the only thing keeping him from losing his mind.

A creeping thought struck the informant and he was honestly surprised he hadn't thought of it before. Where was Shinra? What about Kida and Mikado? Celty and Anry? Aoba, Simon, Kadota, Walker, Erika, Namie, his sisters, and even Shizou… Where were they? Survival had been the only thing on Izaya's mind so he hadn't thought about where anyone else might be. Had they even survived the Spaniard's terrorist attack? Had Namie been in the apartment when the building came down? Suddenly Izaya felt very alone. Everyone he knew was gone; well he assumed so. It was useless to be hopeful given his current situation. Another thought entered Izaya's mind and the raven haired teen was surprised that he hadn't thought about it before either.

What would he do from here? Was he going to wait around, just try to survive and hope he doesn't slip up and get caught by the Sweepers? Izaya knew it was ignorant to think that this war would end in his lifetime, so simply waiting for it to pass over would be useless. He knew he should probably leave this city and make a run for the hills, but the informant would be horribly out of his element there. The raven haired male felt safest within the boundaries of the city, but how long until the place got entirely too dangerous?

Izaya pushed the thoughts from his mind. He needed his head to stay clear and listening for any possible danger. There would be plenty of time to think his next move out when he got home. Just in time, the informant heard heavy footsteps racing down one of the alleys nearby. Quickly, Izaya slunk into another alleyway, his body becoming one with the shadows as he pulled up his black hood. The pounding feet stopped about a good yard or two away as the sounds of ragged breathing filled the still and crisp air.

"Sheesh, how has he not been captured yet? He's always making too much noise!", said a young sounding boy.

Izaya guessed he was about Kida's age if anything.

"Are you stupid? With strength like that, no one would be able to capture him even if they wanted to. He's nearly invincible.", said an older sounding teen.

The raven haired male still hiding in the alley a few feet away smirked at the teens' words. Shizou was obviously still alive by the sound of it. The lonely feeling the male had felt before fell away as he continued on his way. He'd been stupid to think that Shizou, that monster, could ever be killed. Falling buildings, bullets, and Sweepers wouldn't even faze him. He was shocked ,though, that he hadn't even heard or seen the blonde himself. They must have come in close proximity at some point and usually whenever the bartender caught wind of him, he came running to try and kill him. The city wasn't so big that it'd be impossible for them to meet up at some point. Izaya travelled the whole expanse of the city within the day everyday, checking things out and observing things, so why hadn't he seen him at least once?

Doubt sunk into the raven haired teen as he turned down an alley and then another and another, until he found the bunker he had been holing up in. If Shizou was still here, he would have known about it. Izaya dismissed the conversation, thinking that surely they were talking about someone else. Someone a victim of the experiments the government are conducting. It wasn't completely unknown for some out-of-control experiments to escape.

The informant checked that the stick he'd stuck into the loop of the handles to the bunker doors was still in place, so he knew that no one was currently inside before looking around to make sure the coast was clear. Finding no one, he pulled out the stick and opened the doors and descended into the underground space, making sure to close the doors behind himself.

The male switched on the generator-powered lights as he went down the four steps to the surprisingly spacious bunker. There had been a bed down here already and fresh sheets in the cabinet on the far left side of the room. There had even been water, food, and even a sink had been already in here as well. With a sigh, the raven-haired male plopped onto the bed, his body weary as he picked up his phone from the wobbly dresser beside it; pulling the device of it's charger in the process. He turned the screen on to find that he had no messages, which wasn't all that surprising since not a lot of people had electricity at the moment. With a sigh Izaya went to put his phone back down, until he changed his mind and pulled it back to his face again. The informant quickly went down his contact list until he found the exact contact he was looking for.

'Are you still alive Shizu-chan?'

Izaya stared at the text message for a long moment, until he finally pressed send. He doubt he'd get a quick response or one at all, so he set his phone down. zIt was useless to try and send a message to the blonde. It was more reasonable to think that Shizou was captured, after all the military now made many others with the same monstrous strength and must know how to combat and detain the strength they possessed, but Izaya continued to hang onto the hope that it was in fact the blonde who had run into those two teens. It was weird that he clung to this hope so strongly while being firm to the assumption that everyone else was either dead or in hybrid camps. To him, Shizou was the most indestructible force in the planet and if the blonde was detained, then there was no hope for the fate the world had sunk into.

-
The informant woke up how he'd woken up for the past two weeks, violently and as if ice-cold water had been thrown onto him. Usually there was a reason for his abrupt awakenings like gunshots, screaming, or even the distinct sound of horse's hooves, but this time there seemed to be no reason at all. Izaya sat confused for a while as he looked at the very dim light that showed through the cracks of the bunker doors. From the amount of light there was, the raven-haired male deducted that it was the early hours of the morning. There was only silence beyond the double-doors of his living space, not even birds were chirping. Hearing nothing at all, the informant began to turn back over and sleep, dismissing his reaction as just his nerves. The raven-haired male settled back into his sheets again, still feeling unsettled. There had to be a reason he woke up. His body had never misled him before, so why would it now?

As if confirming this, Izaya heard popping sounds in the distance and the occasional tremble that slightly shook the walls of the bunker. The informant silently thanked the heavens that he was a light sleeper as he got up and quickly went to gather the little belongings, food, and water he had just in case. As Izaya silently and swiftly gathered his stuff, throwing his charger in a bag and his phone in his pocket, he thought about what the safest thing to do was. The crimson-eyed informant could stay and pray that the soldiers or terrorists, whoever was attacking, didn't come across his bunker, or he could escape the city and into the unknown. Izaya didn't know what was happening outside of his city, his comfort zone, so he couldn't tell if staying was better than leaving. Heavy footsteps and shouts of five to six people running by jerked Izaya out of his musings.

Where groups went, the Sweepers followed. There was no way the raven-haired male could simply wait here and hope this all would pass. Whether he ran to another part of the city or moved on to another place entirely, he could not stay here in this bunker. Grabbing whatever else he could carry in his pockets and backpack without it being too heavy a burden to carry, Izaya started to run; pushing open the doors of the bunker. Immediately, the informant saw the thick smoke in the air and the popping sounds of firing guns drawing closer. Without waiting for himself to come up with a strategy, the raven-haired male took off running up the alley he'd come down the night before, avoiding following any groups so he could stay under the radar.

As his long strides carried him across the street and away from what was his home for the past week, Izaya heard more people run past as the sound he had come to dread the most, thundered not far off. The Sweepers had come and this time they had brought dangerous reinforcements, the popping sounds and horse's hooves pounding ever closer . As Izaya looked back at the sound of a cracking gunshot, he saw a man on a horseback fall as his beautiful palomino anglo-arab raced onward; spooked and panicked. The killing had induced an all out miniature war in the middle of the street and the informant didn't wait around to see who came out victorious. Seeing that the city was being hit hard as he ran through the maze-like streets of Ikebukuro, Izaya knew what he had to do. Even though the thought of leaving unsettled him, almost terrified him, he had to leave.

If this raid was unsuccessful then the Defense would only send more fire-power to the city next time. Izaya had figured a while back that the Defense was only taking the people from cities that had been under terrorist attacks. The way he added it all up, was that these people had no home or food and could expect no help from the already stretched-thin Defense. They would have all starved to death anyways, so why not put these people to good use? When he thought of it that way, it made perfect sense, but which cities were free of the Sweepers? Did they set up borders around safe cities to keep the terrorist-city survivors out? Were those places even any better?

Izaya was once again rudely jerked from his musings as a body collided into his side, tackling him to the ground. The raven-haired male twisted himself away from the shorter body and pulled his knife out of his pocket at surprising speed. As the smaller male fumbled for his own knife, the informant quickly ran towards the man and pushed him against the alley wall, blade against the male's throat.

"Sweeper or civilian?", Izaya said in a hoarse voice, his vocal cords strained at having not been used in so long.

The blonde teen behind the blade looked up with a terrified look on his face, sweat rolling slowly down his face as he swallowed thickly.
"...I-Izaya? I-It's me… Masaomi.", the small teen said carefully, unsure of the older man's current mental state.

The informant's eyes brightened with recognition as he pulled his knife away. There was a moment where the two just stared at each other, looking the other in front of them up and down before the floor shook with a grenade and a deafening explosion filled the air. Without a word, the taller male grasped the blonde teen's arm and raced away in the direction he'd been going in before. Kida made no protest as he let himself be dragged along by the informant, the fact that Izaya was manipulative and the last person he'd ever want to be with not even entering his mind.

Once far enough away from the commotion, the raven-haired male let go of the blonde's arm, a silent signal that Kida wasn't obligated to come and that Izaya was merely getting him away from the immediate danger. Even when he was let go of, the teen followed. Izaya was the last familiar thing he could cling to. For a while the teen had been running the city with Saki and Aoba, simply surviving and trying to find Anry and Mikado. Aoba and Kida clashed a lot of the time, but Saki could easily bring down their fights. The little group had functioned perfectly until Saki had been captured a week ago. It had torn Masaomi apart and made him careless, putting both himself and Aoba into many tight and dangerous situations. The last the blonde had seen of the younger teen was three days ago after they'd gotten into the biggest fight they'd had yet. It was a full-out fist fight that ended in nose-bleeds and cuts from nails or nicely-aimed hits. Aoba quickly decided afterwards that he had had enough and called Kida "deadweight and a liability" before going his own way. A Kida alone with guilt and sadness was the worst Kida. He wandered the streets blankly without any regard to his safety after that, often walking into other's territories or boldly stealing off another's plate if he saw the chance. This was the kind of life the blonde would have lived until someone decided to finally kill him had the attack not happened, jerking him from his dark place and breathing the will to survive back into him.

The informant slowed to a jog as the blonde followed suit. They were now in the outskirts of the city and the explosions happening down in it could clearly be seen from the elevated position they were now in. Kida expected Izaya to stop so they could tell one another their stories and what information they had, but he raven-haired male kept his pace steady, running up the incline without much strain. The silence continued for a while longer as Masaomi watched Orihara's familiar black jacket flap out behind him. The blonde decided that silence was the better option at the moment, so he held back on all the questions he had. If anyone had the answers or a better understanding on all of this, then it was the informant, but Kida had to be patient and make it out of this alive. He'd figure out what the motive behind this all was and find Saki soon enough.

Izaya scanned the horizon looking for any possible threats as he listened to the footsteps behind him. He couldn't figure out if running into Kida was a good or bad thing yet. Groups tended to be sought out and he was very much aware at how much the shorter male despised him. Should he abandon the blonde to ensure he wouldn't be stabbed to death in his sleep or should he risk it all for the comfort of a familiar face? Orihara quickly came to the conclusion that two people moving in a group wouldn't be too noticeable, that Kida may have some valuable information, and extra eyes and ears were needed in unfamiliar territory. Rather than worry about the future, the informant needed to worry about now.

How was he going to get around effectively? Walking would take too long, jogging would exhaust their energy from the little food they have, and cars weren't an option since they were confined to the roads. As if some greater force had taken pity on him and sent him means of travel, the answer appeared nearly out of thin air. The golden coat of the mare Izaya had seen maybe forty to fifty minutes before was grazing peacefully ahead of them, it's white mane and tail flowing out behind it like some kind of horse halo. The informant held out a hand to stop Kida from walking any further as he motioned to where the anglo-arab was.

"Stay here. I'm going to see if we just acquired a means of transportation. ", the taller male murmured as the blonde nodded in understanding.

Izaya came closer making clicking sounds with his mouth and holding a hand out, making the mare aware of his presence so he didn't spook her. The palomino raised her head, the white markings on her face reflecting the early morning sun harshly, as her nostrils flared and her ears angled towards the informant. Curious brown eyes stared at the raven-haired male as he came even closer, murmuring in a soothing voice to the animal. The horse remained calm, most likely because it was used to the sound of gunshots and bombs going off, as the mare let out a soft neigh, taking two cautious steps forward; her nose still flaring as she took in Izaya's scent.

"I won't hurt you, I promise, I just need you to get me out of here. I know horses get lonely all alone and I can almost guarantee your human won't be coming back for you. It would be better to come with me and Kida-kun. Kida-kun loves horses, you know, and he wouldn't leave you all alone if you come.", Izaya cooed, making the teen behind him roll his eyes.

The blonde watched silently as the informant charmed the horse into letting him grab hold of her reins,as if she'd listened carefully to the proposition before giving in, and lead her towards the teen waiting further down the slight incline.

"Hurry and get on, Kida-kun. I'll be in front.", Izaya said as the shorter male, made a slight noise of distaste at what was to come.

Holding onto the informant's hips to keep him steady wasn't something the blonde wanted to do, but living was deemed something he wanted to do so he clambered up, leaving space for the taller male to climb up in front. As soon as Izaya had gotten settled into the saddle, Kida reluctantly held onto his waist. The warmth of the informant's middle was undeniably pleasant on the teen's nearly frozen hands. Feeling cold arms wrap around him securely, the informant made a clucking noise, which made the horse start off in a trot. Kida squeaked at the suddenness of the movement as he held onto Izaya tightly, burying his face into the informant's back.

"Don't cry, Kida-kun.", Izaya teased.

"I'm not crying.", Kida grumbled as he left his head where it was.

The blonde was exhausted. Making tough decisions, losing his girlfriend, dealing with depression, and fights with a certain dark blue haired teen, had taken a lot out of him. Finally letting someone else take the reins, both literally and figuratively was a relief. Izaya knew how to make good decisions and knew what to do in tight situations. Kida could finally let himself relax as he clung to a familiar presence, even if it wasn't necessarily the most pleasant of them all. The smaller male quickly found himself beginning to be lulled to a half-sleep state by the easy gait of the horse. The mare was a smooth ride and didn't jossle her riders nearly as much as the other horses Kida had rode in his lifetime. The blonde suspected good breeding and the horse breed itself had a lot to do with it.

Izaya was silent as he steered the elegant mare passed obstacles, his eyes still searching the horizon as he made sure to mind Kida. He could tell the shorter male was drifting. The blonde's grip would loosen at times, but tighten if the mare accidently stumbled on the rocky terrain or moved too suddenly to one direction. Usually the informant didn't care for physical contact, but his will to survive kept him from thinking about it too much. The outskirts of the city consisted of a small expanse of a prairie-like landscape, but with some incline to it. This landscape would last only for a short period until the pair reached the next city. The informant had a sinking feeling that this journey, that would usually take only two or three hours by train would take a lot longer on the back of a trotting horse. The weight of the two bodies only slowed the mare down even more and Izaya silently wished he could have come across a stallion instead.

Having a mare had it's advantages still. Female horses were more obedient and tended to be more agile and faster due to them not being weighed down by muscle. This would be a huge advantage when running from pursuers; most of the Sweepers preferred stallions over mares. They also seemed to prefer Holsteiners over other horse breeds. Holsteiners were originally bred as war horses so it made sense that they'd prefer them. That combined with best attributes, their jumping ability and their endurance, made them and all around perfect horse for the battlefield and capturing people in difficult terrain. While Holsteiners had fantastic ability and were skilled in every area, the Anglo-Arab had more ability in the areas that mattered most.

The Anglo-Arab is a cross between an Arabian and a Thoroughbred. Arabians are known to have the best endurance out of any other horse breed on the planet while Thoroughbreds are known to be the fastest and when you combine those two attributes into one, you got a horse with both great speed and great endurance. While the Anglo is not as fast as a Thoroughbred or possessed as much stamina as an Arabian, it still was faster and had more endurance than a Holsteiner. It was truly a shame that the Sweepers didn't realize how much more useful Anglos are and now Izaya had a very huge advantage over them.. Well if he didn't have Kida on the horse with him.

The informant was scared out of his smugness at finally gaining some advantage when the mare under him snorted out of boredom. Obviously Izaya wasn't familiar with the sounds horses made, so he hadn't been expecting a noise like that to come from the beast. The sudden movement of the informant made caused a groan to emit out of the teen still clinging to him as the blonde woke to full awakeness.

"Izaya, my butt hurts. Can I get off and walk for a bit?", Kida whined as he shifted around to find a position that didn't make him ache.

The informant looked around at their surroundings. The city was out of sight now, as they'd gotten over the massive hill they were travelling over before and the horizon ahead of them was an empty highway stretching forward to their left and the plain-like landscape they were travelling through to their right. Izaya thought they should go more to the right to get far from the highway and lower the chance of being seen, but he did need to check the condition of the saddle and reins and the actual state of the horse. The raven-haired male hadn't really seen any injuries so far, but it was a good idea to check.

"What have you been up to these past two weeks, Kid-kun~?", Izaya asked in a sing-song voice as he pulled the reins back slightly to stop the horse, knowing it would make the blonde stutter and get defensive.

"It's not like that, pervert!", Kida yelled indignantly as he jumped off the horse irritatedly as Izaya let one of his classic smirks grace his lips in the first time in what seemed like years.

Orihara had forgotten how easily Kida could be riled up and finding out that fact all over again was exciting. With the smirk still on his face, the informant slid off the horse onto the ground. He hissed in pain at how his rear and legs ached and hoped his body would adjust to travelling on horseback soon.

"Seeing that you're Izaya, I think you've actually been up to the things you accused me of just now.", the blonde said as his lips curved downwards into a frown.
Izaya faked a hurt look as he let out a breathy sigh.

"Aww~ That one hurt, Kida-kun. I don't sleep around contrary to belief.", the informant said as he moved around to the front of the horse to check the bridle.

"I don't believe you...", the blonde mumbled as he watched Izaya's nimble fingers tugged and pulled on the straps of the bridle as the mare sniffed at the raven's dark hair.

The mare nickered happily and did a still little piaffe as Izaya ran his hand down the horse's long elegant neck. Kida was silently irked that the horse liked such a horrible person. Izaya was the most despicable human he had ever met, yet people and apparently horses alike adored him.

"If you keep frowning, your face will get stuck like that.", the informant teased as he moved down the horse's side to take off its saddle and check if the horse wasn't swaybacked.

"That would never happen.", the blonde retorted as the mare finally turned her attention to the teen, butting her head into his shoulder to urge him to pet her.

"Oh but it will, Kida-kun! Haven't you seen how Shizu-chan's face is always stuck in a scowl?"

Kida rolled his eyes as he gave into the demanding horse and combed her mane back into place. Izaya said nothing more as he took of the horse's saddle with much difficulty due to the weight. With a grunt the informant lowered the heavy leather to the ground and took a step back to look at the alignment of the horse's spine.

"Do you think Shizou was captured or something?", Kida asked suddenly, shifting to the light air to a more heavy and serious one.

Izaya's eyes became hard again as the reality of the situation came back down on him. He quickly picked back up the saddle and swung it over back onto the horse and buckled the strap. They had lingered here for longer than he intended.

" I never came across him even once since this all happened, but I overheard some kids talking about someone who was loud and had a lot of strength. I assumed then that they were talking about Shizu-chan, but I'm thinking it may have been someone else who'd been spliced."

"I've heard rumors about a guy like that and immediately thought of Shizou, but I never once saw him either…", Kida murmured as he thought about how weird this all was.

"In any case, we need to get moving. I'm not going to concern myself with a monster.", Izaya said shortly as he climbed back onto the mare's back.

He was eager to get moving again and away from the highway before the Sweepers came through here on their way back to the Hybrid camps. Kida climbed up after the older male and as soon as they were settled, Izaya made a kissing noise and the horse broke out into a full on gallop at a diagonal from the highway. The blonde nearly fell off the back of the beast as she swiftly carried them far from the black pavement. Izaya didn't have to run the horse, but he wanted to sample the mare's speed. The wind whipped through the informant's raven hair as he felt the horse's powerful legs push forward while the mare's breath came out in huffs, her tail raised high. Behind him Kida had him in a death grip, his face buried into his back again.

The informant noted how smooth the ride was. It felt more like he was floating across the ground rather than riding a horse. It was exhilarating, not as exhilarating as jumping from rooftop to rooftop while evading someone who wanted to kill you, but still exhilarating. The palomino playfully tossed her head as she pushed herself to an even faster speed without any prompting from her rider. It was obvious that she loved to run just for the fun of it and was happy to be finally worked. Izaya didn't complain as he let the horse travel any pace she wanted, sometimes speeding up and other times slowing to rest at a speed that let her regain some stamina. Kida let out a groan, obviously not finding the set pace enjoyable at all. Izaya prayed he wouldn't throw up on him as the raven-haired male continued to keep his eyes open for anything suspicious or anything worth checking out.

After a good solid twenty minutes or so of the set pace, Kida finally couldn't stand it. It was easier to ride a horse when you were in front, in back it was harder and you worked more to actively ride. The blonde's hips were sore from having to move his hips to match the horse's gait and his legs were aching from having to cling to the horse's sides in order to not fall off.

"Izaya, slow down…", the blonde said in an almost pleading voice.

Orihara saw no reason to decline the request so he slowed the horse to a trot, much to the mare's distaste. In retaliation, the palomino raised her neck up high and kept her tail raised as she moved forward in a way that jostled her riders, her gait being heavily exaggerated. When the informant tried to get her to stop, the horse leg yielded and moved sideways instead of forwards..

"Quit being fussy!", Izaya said in irritation as he tried to regain control.

As if she understood what the informant had said, the mare straightened out, but refused to relax her neck and tail. Izaya guessed that the mare was testing her new rider to see what she could get away with. With a sigh, the raven-haired male pulled them to a stop and slid off followed shortly after by Kida. The mare then nickered and tossed her head again as she did another still piaffe. Izaya saw that the mare was itching for a run, so he turned her loose. Kida stared in disbelief as he watched the horse gallop away.

"Why'd you let her go?!", the blonde asked as the informant began walking towards a nearby tree.

"Relax, Kida-kun, she won't go far. We'll have to break her of her delinquent attitude as soon as possible or else she might just decide that she doesn't want to listen to me anymore.", Izaya said as he sat down.

Masaomi watched as the mare came thundering back and past them again a ways before turning and thundering back to the left.

"She must still be young. My guess would be just barely three.", Izaya continued as Kida sat down beside him.

There was a long silence as the autumn sun blazed down on the land surrounding them, turning the mare into the sun itself. She tossed her head and pranced to and fro, bucking every once in awhile once the urge presented itself.

"I think I finally have a name for her.", Masaomi said as he watched the mare run passed them.

"And what is that?", Izaya sighed as he watched the rebellious horse do as she pleased.

"Sukeban."

"Let's not give her a name that will make her think she's above us, Kida-kun."

"She's a horse, Izaya."

"What about Aki? It sounds more feminine than Sukeban.", the informant offered as Kida thought it over.

"Sukeban sounds cooler.", the blonde pouted as he watched the mare finally slow to a walk.

"Fine. I wouldn't have named the horse if you weren't here anyways.", Izaya said as he stood up and walked out of the shade the tree behind them supplied.

The blonde slowly stood as the mare walked toward Izaya and pressed her nose into the informant's waiting hand.

"So what do you think of the name Sukeban?", the raven haired male asked the mare as her ears swiveled forward to listen to his soothing voice.

The horse nickered softly at Izaya as she headbutted his shoulder.

"See? She likes it.", Masaomi stated as he walked up and scratched the troublesome horse behind her ears.

"She's a horse, Kida-kun.", Izaya stated.

The blonde responded with a glare as the informant felt a buzz in back pocket. Startled, the raven-haired male jumped a little making the mare nose at him in concern. Taking out his phone, Izaya saw that he had a new message.

'Are you still alive Shizu-chan'

'No.'

The informant smirked at the message. So he hadn't been killed nor captured.

"Who is it?", Kida asked curiously as he tried to crane his neck to see the message.

"Shizu-chan.", Izaya said with his smirk ever-growing.

'Are you still in the city or wandering around like us?'

The informant got an immediate response, which was something that wasn't very characteristic of Heiwajima.

'Us?'

'Me, Kida-kun, and a horse named Sukeban.'

There was a long moment where nothing came through and Orihara thought that surely their conversation was over.

'I'm out in some cabin north of Ikebukuro.'

'Alone?'

'Yeah.'

'Are you moving from that spot anytime soon?'

'It's quiet here and there's electricity from those sun-things, so no. '

'Kay~ Just don't get captured!'
There was no more texts after that and the informant shrugged. That was the most Shizuo had ever said to him through text throughout the whole six years he'd known him.

"Is he joining?", Kida asked with wide and curious eyes.

"I don't know Kida-kun, but if I had to guess: Never."

Izaya's eyes narrowed as he noticed one of Sukeban's ears was swiveled back, picking up sounds that Masaomi and Orihara couldn't. The sounds must have gotten closer because now both ears were angling back. At this point, the teen beside the informant had noticed the horse's weird behavior. The mare completely turned her head to stare at something behind her, the mare's ears angling back and forth quickly. She was nervous. The taller male put a hand on his knife as Kida moved behind him but nonetheless but a hand on his own knife.

"Izaya, we should get on the horse…", Masaomi whispered as Izaya promptly ignored him.

Just when tension had reached it's highest, a pair of wild hares jumped out into the open as they fought. The mare looked at the little creatures in awe as she extended her neck as far as it could go, wanting to touch them but not get too close.

"Just little bunnies, Kida-kun. No reason to run away.", the informant sighed as he started walking away, observing the landscape.

The blonde teen patted the horse's neck to pull her attention from the hares as he followed Izaya. The mare paid hardly any mind to the shorter male as she took a few steps closer to the hares, scaring them away. Sukeban lingered for a few moments longer, sad that the little creatures had run away, before she realized Orihara had gone away from her. The mare whinnied and followed after her beloved informant. Once she caught up to him the Palomino nickered and promptly head bumped the raven-haired man's shoulder so hard, he nearly fell forward. Kida coughed out a laugh that was quickly silenced by a glare from Izaya as the informant adjusted his backpack.