Disclaimer: I do not own Ookami Shoujo to Kuro Ouji or any of the characters

"So, you two weren't dating?" Nozomi asked and Kyouya sighed since it was the fourth time he asked the question. Kyouya was wondering if the information Nozomi could provide was worth hearing his inane questions. While Nozomi's smile was casual, his eyes were sharp with a subtle intelligence and Kyouya felt as if Nozomi could see through him.

While Nozomi continued to ask him questions, Kyouya looked through the evidence Nozomi brought from his office. They were laid out over his living room floor and Kyouya hoped that he could find some hint of what happened to Erika in the mountain of articles he brought. Unfortunately, Nozomi interrupted his thoughts by asking, "What kind of relationship did you have with her then?"

"… It's complicated." Kyouya knew that he couldn't tell Nozomi the truth. No doubt, he would write an article about how he could talk to a ghost or how he was crazy. But he also knew that Nozomi would continue to ask him until he gave him a satisfying answer. "We didn't talk much back then but it's natural to want to find out what happened to someone, isn't it?"

"Not particularly," Nozomi said with a shrug. He watched Kyouya carefully and studied him. He had a talent for seeing a person's true nature. The Kyouya he knew in high school wouldn't involve himself in other people's lives unless he had a personal attachment. Even when he was dating a girl, he was distant. Why was someone like him be searching for Erika so intently?

Kyouya's phone buzzed and he saw that it was a text from Sanda. "Erika's friend is going to be here soon. She's going to bring some information her private investigator found too. Hopefully, we'll find something new if we combine everything we have together."

"If we're going to add a bunch more information, I think it's better if we start from scratch. Do you have something we can pin things to?" Nozomi asked as he began to gather the documents. He raised a brow when he tried to pick up an article and it refused to move, as if someone was holding onto it.

"Let me read that," Kyouya took the article from him. He held it in front of him but his eyes weren't on the paper. Throughout the afternoon, Nozomi found some of his behaviour as strange. But Nozomi doubted Kyouya would answer any of his questions if he asked since he refused to answer a simple question like his relationship to Erika.

"What are you doing? Are you trying to make him think I'm crazy or this house is haunted?" Kyouya whispered harshly to Erika sitting beside him. She didn't answer him and narrowed her eyes at the article instead. They all reported on her disappearance but gave conflicting conclusions. She wondered which one was try and if she would ever truly know.

Though she asked Kyouya to help her, they didn't make much progress to discovering the truth. They spoke to several people and tried to find what happened to her, they only ended with more questions than answers. "Is this everything? Can you ask Nozomi about this number I saw in the police report?"

Kyouya sighed but did as she asked. "Hey, Nozomi, can you hand me the phone records in the police report? I want to check that number that kept calling her before she disappeared."

"Don't bother, the call came from a burner phone so they couldn't find it. It's a dead end so we shouldn't waste our time with it." Nozomi explained and Kyouya's brows furrowed. From the corner of his eyes, he watched Erika who had a similar expression. He knew that it would be pointless to ask about the calls since she didn't have her memories.

The same thought was racing through Erika's mind. She tried to open Nozomi's folder to see the record again but her hand merely passed through the paper. Every time she thought she would getter closer to the truth, it slipped through her fingers. Kyouya's hand closed over hers but passed through it to open the folder for her. His warmth was reassuring and ebbed her frustration slightly.

"Thanks, Kyouya." She smiled at him and he didn't know how she could find the strength to do so. He knew that he wouldn't be able to read about his own disappearance if he was in her situation. Even after her hope was shattered by Kimura, she was able to move forward. "Maybe Sanda will recognize this number so we should ask her if I told her about someone calling me a lot."

Kyouya nodded to her but spoke to Nozomi so he wouldn't become suspicious. "I have a pin board that we can use. It's in my room so I'll bring it down. If Takeru and Sanda comes, just open the door to them."

"I'll help!" Erika jumped to her feet and followed him. They both knew that there was little she could do to help but neither commented on the fact. Honestly, Erika didn't want to be apart from Kyouya. She didn't know if it was because she was dependent on him or if it was for another reason. Kyouya seemed to understand her feelings since he nodded to her.

He walked into his room and began to clear off his pin board. Most people would fill their pin boards with personal pictures or memories but Kyouya's was filled with lesson plans. Knowing Kyouya's personality, she was surprised that he was a teacher but she could see how much he cared about his job and students. "We should put these somewhere safe while we're using the board."

"We can just put them on my desk." Kyouya told her and she began to take remove the pins and papers from the board. She had to concentrate so her fingers wouldn't pass through the pins or drop them. Erika carefully piled the documents on his desk and place the pin into a small box. Kyouya saw her frustration and said, "Don't strain yourself. They're not that important where I'm worried about losing them."

"But you worked hard on them. And I really want to pay you back since you've helped me so much." Erika insisted when she placed the last piece of paper onto his desk. Her honest brown eyes touched him and he had to turn away from her. Not for the first time, he wondered why a person would want to hurt someone like Erika.

Kyouya took the pin board off his wall and carried it downstairs. It wasn't that large or heavy but Erika felt a little guilty. He was doing so much for her. She wondered if he would've helped her as he was doing now if she hadn't threatened to haunt him. Erika wanted to think that he would but another part of her knew that it wasn't true.

When he walked into the living room, he found that Takeru and Sanda had arrived while he was in his bedroom. Takeru and Nozomi were speaking excitedly with each other and Kyouya wondered when they had been acquainted since they spoke like close friends. Kyouya knocked on the wall to catch their attention. "I see you've made yourselves at home."

"You're finally back, Kyouya! I hope you didn't mind that I made tea for everyone. Also, you're out of milk." Takeru commented with a wide grin and Kyouya rubbed his temple. He held out a plate of cookies as a peace offering. "Take one. I made them this morning."

"Is this one from your father's recipe book or is this another one of your experiments?" Kyouya took a cookie as he asked the question. Takeru didn't mind the edge in his voice since he knew that Kyouya wasn't truly angry at him. After he took a bite, he said: "Well, I'm alive so I'm guessing your dad made these. Thanks, you didn't need to bring these."

"I thought everyone would want something sweet to eat while we're working this out." Takeru knew that it would be difficult and awkward to talk about Erika's death when they were mostly strangers. It would be simpler to solve the mystery if they were able to cooperate so he tried to keep the atmosphere light. "I brought enough for everyone so dig in!"

"Thanks, Takeru, but I really want to get started on this meeting so we can find out what happened to Erika faster. I know she's out there somewhere and I want to return her home as fast as possible." Sanda told them with hard eyes. It was plain to see the determination in her eyes. "I brought what my private investigator could find but it's not much."

"I have access to her school records but I don't know if I can get them off school property. But I have notes I made of them." Kyouya offered and took out a notebook.

"You guys never tried to solve a mystery before, haven't you? The information you guys brought are great and it'll help us but there's a process to these things." Nozomi said as he set up the board. "We need to find how they connect. And the best way to approach this is to think of who would want to see her gone and why. Her case isn't a part of a serial murder so this must be more personal."

"Erika didn't have any enemies. There were people who didn't like her and bullied her but I don't believe they would go as far as something like this." Sanda pointed out and Kyouya had to agree. He turned to where Erika was playing with Lime and hoped she would be too distracted to hear their conversation. He didn't want it to upset her. Despite her strong smile, she could only stay optimistic for so long.

"I guess we can only try to work out a timeline of what happened before she died for now. But we should highlight anyone who can have a motive." Nozomi began to pin several articles onto the board. Kyouya looked through the folder Nozomi brought and handed Sanda the phone record.

"Do you recognize this number? It called her a lot before she disappeared so it might be connected somehow. Did Erika ever tell you about someone calling her or something like that?" Kyouya asked and Sanda's eyes furrowed as she thought back. Unfortunately, she shook her head.

"Why wouldn't she tell me? She would always tell me if something happened to her at school so why wouldn't she tell me about these phone calls?" Sanda bit her lip. She couldn't help but wonder if Erika would still be alive if she had told her if someone was bothering her. "I don't think a high schooler would go through the trouble of getting a burner phone just to harass her further."

"This number," Erika stood in front of the board and touched the highlighted number. It looked so familiar and it gave her the sense of dread.

Kyouya's breath caused a white fog as he walked out onto his balcony. It was surprisingly cold for May but he wanted some fresh air before he would be forced to attend a family dinner. He didn't understand why his parents were forcing him to attend when the event was pointless and a ritual at best.

"I already promised I wouldn't tell anyone so please stop calling me like this. My parents will start to ask questions." Kyouya heard Erika's voice and he realized that she was also on her balcony. Her back was to him so she didn't notice him. He was about to leave and give her privacy but something about her stiff shoulders stopped him. The call was obviously upsetting her.

"Are you okay?" Kyouya asked when she ended her call. Erika turned sharply and her wide eyes began to dart around him. It was obvious to him that she was worried that he heard her conversation. She almost looked like a lost puppy so he took pity on her. "You look a little cold. You shouldn't come out in this weather without something like a jacket."

"I thought the call wouldn't be that long. Anyways, I like the cold." She told him and he tried to keep his thoughts from appearing on his face. She was a dreadful liar and he could see through her. "How long have you been out here? Did you hear anything?"

"I just came out so I didn't hear your conversation." He answered her and she looked visibly relieved. He wanted to ask her about the phone call but he didn't know if he could. They were neighbours and spoke occasionally but he didn't know her well enough to intervene with her personal life. "I just came out for some fresh air but it's too cold to stay out here for long. You should get back inside too."

"Alright." Erika said but she didn't turn or move. Kyouya didn't either and they stood in an awkward silence. She was the first the break the silence with a nervous voice. "Kyouya, if you knew about something that was wrong, would you tell people about it?"

"Depends on what it is." Kyouya shrugged but that was obviously not the answer she was looking for as she sighed heavily. He wondered if it was about the people that were bullying her and if he should involve himself in her problems. "Is something wrong Erika? Is it about the person that called you?"

"I don't know if I should tell anyone about this. I was thinking about telling Sanda but I know she would want to go to authorities but I think that might be a little too much. She says that they're in love so I don't want to do anything to ruin it. He might even lose his job if I tell people but I don't think it's right."

"Do those two mean something to you?" Kyouya asked her and she shook her head.

"I found out that they were dating by complete accident. But they made me promise not to tell anyone." Erika told him but didn't go into any more detail. Kyouya wondered who she was referring to and if he knew the person. The only thing he knew for certain about her situation was her anxious expression.

"Look, I think it's more simple to tell someone about this secret of yours. If its really bothering you and you don't owe them anything, it's better to deal with the situation. You need to take care of yourself." Kyouya told her and she looked thoughtful before she smiled at him. It was much lighter and he felt something move in his chest at the sight of it.

"You're right. Thank you!" Erika turned to return to her room.

"Wait, I want to do something to thank you. Is there anything I can do for you?" She asked him and he was surprised that she would make such an offer. The only thing he did was speak with her but that small conversation made her smile lightly. They were familiar strangers at best so he didn't think that the conversation would impact her decision much.

"You don't really need to." Kyouya told her but she had already walked into her room.

"Did Erika ever tell you about a secret she was keeping for someone?" Kyouya asked Sanda and she was confused by his question for a moment. It was off topic from their conversation. "I just remembered overhearing a conversation she was having on the phone. She sounded upset but she said that she was going to talk to you about it.

"That could be the motivation. Maybe the person wanted to that secret from coming out." Nozomi suggested. Looking back, Kyouya wished that he had pushed harder for an answer that day. He wondered if Erika remembered the secret.

"Do you know if she kept a diary or a journal?" Takeru suggested. "She might've written about it in there even if she didn't tell anyone about the secret. Maybe we should go to her house and look for it."

"Her parents didn't throw anything of hers away. But if she did have a diary, they would've given it to the police so I don't think she had one." Sanda told them with a frown. If Erika did have a diary, it would help them learn about what happened before she disappeared. "Maybe we should go and speak with them to see if they know anything about these calls."

Kyouya thought back to when he looked through Erika's room. He didn't find a diary or something that would give him a hint of a secret she was keeping. "I already tried talking to them. Her parents are on a trip so we can't ask them or go looking through her room. I don't know if we should open up old wounds for them either."

"So, what are we going to do now?" Sanda sighed and rubbed her temple.

"Kyouya," Erika pulled on his sleeve to catch his attention. Her eyes were nervous for a moment before hardening with determination. "I think if I try, I can remember. I think we need to find something that'll spark my memory like all the other times!"

I haven't updated this in a long time but I don't want to put this on hiatus. So I'm going to try really hard to update more chapters.