Title: Snowblind

Author: DeadSummerXx

Characters/Pairing: Izaya Orihara & OC

Type: Continuous (Incomplete)

Genre: Romance/General/Humor

Word Count: 2,467

Rating: M (Contains content suitable for mature teens and older)

Disclaimer: Durarara! belongs to its respective owners.

Summary: In a trial of insanity and hope, the fine line between truth and lies is nonexistent, and even the smallest of errors can blind you into believing the unbelievable. But then again, of what worth is a game when one does not have a worthy opponent?

Created on: 7/16/10

Completed on: 7/17/10

Chapter Last Revised on: 9/18/10

A/N: Haha holy crap it has been too long. It's good to be back, though, and with a new fandom no less. I feel really confident about this story, so hopefully it'll go a lot better than my last failed HP attempt. The chapters of this will switch randomly between the views of my OC, Izaya, and most likely a few other characters, very similar to Baccano! All of the POVS will be identified almost immediately, though, so don't worry about that. This chapter is just more of an introduction chapter, explaining a bit of background, et cetera. I'll try my best to update as soon as I can. Now, enough of my rambling. On with the show!

Chapter One

Whisper Down the Lane

My name is Suzumi Yanase, and I am sixteen years old.

I grew up in America, traveling all the time for my father's work. My mother left him a long time ago because of that. I don't miss her, because you can't miss something you never knew. I yearned for her, yes. I yearned for a mother to share things with and to mutually love, like all of the other children had. My father said that she loved me, but I don't believe him. Perhaps she did in a different time, a different life. But not now. Not ever again.

Because I moved so much, it was always hard for me to make and keep friends. I was always bullied, too. I was smarter than all of the other kids, and not just because I'm bilingual. That's when I stopped caring – when I quit worrying about the rest of society and connecting myself with it. I became involved in street fights as I got older, too, especially after my father died. I stayed with my legal guardian, my dad's best friend, when that happened. It was nice not to have to move places all the time, I admit. But that didn't necessarily make my life any better.

None of them were my fault, either. The street fights, I mean. I'm the type to always mind my business, but as I became more and more known in Los Angeles, where my guardian lived, more and more people kept seeing me as a punk wanting to pick fights with everyone. I always tried to calm them with words, of course, but that hardly ever worked. I hate violence, but it was the only way to get through to people like that. I've gotten injured quite a few times, also, but I guess it's true when they say whatever doesn't kill you can only make you stronger.

I hated life in LA. I hated the feeling that I got there, of normalcy. While my rather reluctantly violent lifestyle may not have been normal to a large percentage of the rest of the world's population, and I knew that it could have been a lot worse, it felt as though something was still not there, deep inside me. Like I was missing something important – like I wasn't complete.

That is why, on my sixteenth birthday, I decided that I would go and stay with my uncle in Ikebukuro, Japan. My grandparents originally immigrated to the US from Japan, my uncle having moved back about ten years ago. That makes me one-half Japanese and one-half German (from my mother's side). My father spoke his native language with me while growing up, so both English and Japanese are my "first" languages.

I was glad to be leaving LA – gladder than I had been in a very long time. Ikebukuro sounded like something new, something fresh, like an entire new world open wide before me.

It most certainly felt that way as I stepped out of the terminal in Ikebukuro airport, luggage in hand.

What seemed like thousands of people were chattering all around me, their voices nothing but a loud, booming mixture of indiscernible noises. I suddenly felt very alone and very small in this foreign setting, like I was somehow out of place. It was a strange feeling, alien like this location, but I welcomed it wholeheartedly. I was looking for change in Ikebukuro, and I had already found it.

My eyes tiredly scanned the numerous faces of the people around me as I made my way to sit on a vacant bench between two pillars. I vaguely remembered Uncle Toshiyuki from my early childhood. As I recalled, he was fairly tall for a Japanese person, had dark, messy hair that came down to just past his ears, and a very kind face and chocolate brown eyes. He was rather happy-go-lucky, the very opposite of my father, who was a serious and stoic businessman. It had been ten years, though, and a lot of things can happen to a person in such a large amount of time.

There was a sudden tap on my left shoulder, and I swiveled my head that way to look behind me, but no one was there. I recognized the trick almost immediately, sighing and dropping my head, allowing the barest hint of a smile to grace my lips. I stood, facing a pouting Uncle Toshiyuki, hands in my jeans pockets.

"Nice try, Toshiyuki-oji-san," I began disinterestedly in Japanese, "but I'm afraid I'm far too old to fall for such immature tricks any longer."

Uncle Toshiyuki huffed, hands on his hips and pout still contorting his features. "You're such a downer, Suzu-chan. And here I was, hoping you'd still be the same bubbly little girl I knew all those years ago." The pout dropped, a wistful smile splitting his lips. "Then again, I suppose its all part of growing up."

I smiled for real this time. All in all, he hadn't changed very much from when I last saw him at age six. The only real difference was that the lines around his mouth were a little deeper, the crows feet around his eyes a little sharper. He was still the same old mischievous Uncle Toshiyuki inside, though, and the thought was a welcome one.

"I suppose it is, also, Toshiyuki-oji-san. You yourself haven't changed much at all, though – not that I'm surprised in the least," I replied, stepping around the bench to stand directly in front of him.

Uncle Toshiyuki laughed heartily at that. "I'm not sure whether or not I should be offended, Suzu-chan. You on the other hand have changed quite a bit—and not only in personality," he said genially, taking one of my bags from me with one hand and wrapping the other around my shoulders.

What he said was true, I suppose. When I was six I was really small and my black hair was so short that it came down to my jawline. I also had blunt bangs, hundreds of freckles and a lot of baby fat. Now my hair was much longer and layered, coming down to just past my shoulders with my bangs sweeping off to the side. I still had freckles, but they were much fewer and much more faded. Most of my baby fat was gone, although my face was still round with youth. My teal eyes weren't so large in comparison to my head, either, and I was just over five feet tall and came up to his shoulders. I had grown a lot in the ten years I hadn't seen Uncle Toshiyuki – there's no doubt about that.

I shook my head, smiling faintly. "You should feel happy, Toshiyuki-oji-san," I replied to him amusedly. "It just means that you are still as youthful as ever."

Toshiyuki chuckled lightheartedly as we made our way out of the airport. "What a humbling thing to hear, coming from one so young."

We settled into a comfortable silence as we stepped out into the waning light of afternoon Ikebukuro. Uncle Toshiyuki's car was waiting for us in the lot, and we put my bags in the back seat before hopping into our respective sides. It was strange seeing how all of the driving was flip-flopped in Japan, but I tried to pay more attention to my surroundings than anything else.

Having lived in many places other than LA, I was used to the large city life – in America, that is. Japan wasn't much different, I suppose, but there seemed to be a different, more lively spirit about it – one completely different than what I had experienced back home.

The word broke me from that train of thought. Home? Was that what I really thought of America as? I had never really felt like I belonged there, anywhere in America. I never felt like I was meant to be there, like I was whole. On the other hand, that was where I had lived my entire life, where I had grown up, where I had learned everything I knew.

But as I listened to Uncle Toshiyuki chatter excitedly beside me about nothing in particular, I thought that maybe, just maybe, Ikebukuro could be.

I thought that maybe…Ikebukuro could be that home I had never had and always wanted.

I woke to the sound of Uncle Toshiyuki tapping gently on the door to my room.

"Suzu-chan? Are you awake?"

I groaned tiredly before slipping out of the warm comfort my bed and padding sluggishly over to where Uncle Toshiyuki was standing outside of my room – but not before glancing at the bedside clock. Seven twenty-two am. I stifled my irritated yawn and opened the door, revealing a freshly showered and awake Uncle Toshiyuki, who was dressed in a traditional schoolteacher dress shirt, tie, and khakis. I leaned against the doorframe, crossing my arms and rubbing at my sleep-crusted eyes.

"Now I am," I said, replying to his earlier question.

He smiled sheepishly. "Sorry, Suzu-chan. I just wanted to make sure you were awake before I left. Did you sleep well?"

"Yeah, I guess. Probably the best sleep I've had in the past month," I said, blinking at him owlishly. Stifling yet another yawn, I continued, "And what do you mean before you leave?"

"Oh that's good," he said, like a great weight was taken off his shoulders. I don't know. Maybe there was. "And I work at the university on Saturdays teaching English, remember? Or did I forget to tell you?"

I almost smacked my forehead against the wall. Toshiyuki had, in fact, told me yesterday during dinner, but of course my shitty memory always had to try its hardest to screw up my head. "Oh," I replied. "Right. Sorry."

He chuckled warmly, clapping me on the shoulder like a father would. "Don't worry about it, Suzu-chan. You just woke up. I'll be back some time around two o' clock. There's food in the fridge when you get hungry, but if nothing is to your liking, feel free to go out to eat. I left three-thousand five-hundred yen* on the table, so you should be good as far as that goes."

I nodded, smiling sleepily at him. "Thanks a lot, Toshiyuki-oji-san. Not just for this, but for everything."

He smiled wide at that, eyes crinkling and ruffling my already sleep-tousled hair like he used to do when I was a kid. "I'm happy to help, Suzu-chan. You are my favorite niece, after all."

I smiled and playfully punched him in the arm. "I'm your only niece, stupid."

He pouted, hands on his hips and a mock-serious expression on his face. "It isn't nice for you to call me names when I could quite easily throw you out on the street."

I smiled again at his antics. "But you won't," I said confidently. "I'm your favorite niece, remember?"

He laughed kindly, throwing his hands up in surrender. "All right, Suzu-chan, you got me." Suddenly the jovial expression faded, turning serious – the most serious I had ever seen him. It made me uneasy, as much as I hated to admit it. "If you do decide to go out, though, be careful. While Ikebukuro may seem nice, it has a lot of hidden dangers."

I smirked at him dryly. "You forget that I've lived in New York, Chicago, LA, and various other large cities for extended periods of time. I can take care of myself."

He raised an eyebrow at this, a familiar twinkle appearing in his eyes. "Even so, that won't stop me from worrying – about you or the people you run into, now I'm not so sure."

I rolled my eyes at him, dismissing him with a wave of my hand. "Both, then," I said, settling for a compromise. "But I'll be fine. You, on the other hand, won't be unless you get going."

Toshiyuki looked as though he were about to reply, but then glanced at his watch. He jumped to life, realizing he was going to be late if he didn't hurry. He turned, jogging down the hall. "If you have anything you need, just call me! Mrs. Naoka next door will also be glad to be able to help!" he exclaimed over his shoulder.

"Have a good day," I shouted at him, barely catching his hurried "Ja ne!" as he dashed out the door. I walked over to my bedroom window and watched him start up the car and pull out of the short drive and onto the street, staring at the retreating vehicle until it disappeared out of my sight.

The small house suddenly felt very empty with just me inside of it, but I shook off the feeling in favor of going into the bathroom to wash my face, brush my teeth and hair, et cetera. The bathroom had a very American layout, so I was able to make my way around easily. When I was done, I headed over to my closet to pick out clothes.

I skipped over the various copies of my school uniform, of course. I was never a big fan of skirts or anything regulated. Instead, I just grabbed the first tank top, undergarments, socks, and pair of pants I saw and threw them on. They happened to be a dark teal tank that matched my eyes, black skinny jeans, and dark gray toe socks.

This was a kind outfit I usually wore back in America, but I didn't so much mind. Just to spice it up a little, I decided to put on some eyeliner and mascara and leave down my hair for once. I hoped I wouldn't stick out too much, as I didn't want any trouble in the slightest, but I could only hope.

I had already decided that I would be going out to eat breakfast and lunch, if only just to explore the town. I would be back before Uncle Toshiyuki, though, so as not to worry him. In all honesty, I was actually excited, for the first time in a long time. I would be exploring an unknown place, completely new territory. I was slightly nervous, yes; but all in all certain I could take whatever was thrown at me.

I pocketed my wallet before walking into the main room of Toshiyuki's—correction, our—home. It was small and quaint, but just right for the people living there. Grabbing the money Uncle Toshiyuki set out for me, I slipped on some flats and looked at the digital clock on my cell as I stepped out into the bright Ikebukuro morning. Almost nine. Perfect, I thought. That gives me a few hours to get breakfast and look around a bit before getting lunch.

I smiled, locking the front door behind me and walking into my new life.

*¥3500 is roughly forty USD (United States Dollars). If you're from another country other than Japan or America and are not familiar with either values, a currency converter should suffice to tell you how much it is worth in terms discernible to which you are accustomed.

Yay~! First chapter done! Tell me how I did, onegai. I haven't done anything like this in well over a year, so I'm pretty rusty. Things in Snowblind are really slow right now, and there's no Izaya, but it will pick up soon! I promise you that! As for Izaya…well, you'll just have to see, won't you? –insert devilish smirk here-

Thanks for reading!

P.S. Look up "snowblindness" if you don't know what it is. The wiki article on it is very interesting! :P