miari | Swindler Chapter 2

Title: Swindler

Rating: PG-13 for now

Genre: Slight AU, Drama

Summary: Kurosaki and the Ariakes swindle each other.

Pairing: Kurosagi/Shizuna

Disclaimer: Not mine. Based on trailers by

kirakirakingyo

Chapter 2

"I'm having trouble finding an assistant."

"Oh?"

Kurosaki slurped greedily at the curry that had become part of his daily diet. "Real estate assistant. Someone who can show the buildings and homes that I need to sell."

Ariake leaned against the counter, enjoying the lull of business and conversation with his new friend, or at least Kurosaki hoped Ariake considered him as such. He'd know soon enough.

Kurosaki also leaned forward, careful not to let the strings from the hood of his sweatshirt drag through curry remnants as he smiled with as much charm as he could muster.

"I'd ask you, but that would mean no curry."

Ariake laughed.

"Do you know anyone?"

He drummed his fingers against the counter before he said, "Actually, my sister is looking for a job."

"Really?" Kurosaki kept his voice light.

"Yeah. How soon do you need this assistant?"

"Well...I had a house that I was supposed to show yesterday..."

"I could have her come over here...or meet you someplace?"

A small thrill of victory fluttered through Kurosaki's stomach and he grinned. "Here is fine." Here is perfect.

Half an hour later a flustered but cheery Shizuna was twiddling her fingers nervously as she sat next to Kurosaki. Her brother kept sending sidelong glances at them as he tried to look busy cleaning dirty dishes and serving the only other customer he had. Kurosaki thought it was cute, in some strange way.

"So, you need an assistant?" Shizuna asked cautiously.

Kurosaki smiled. "Real estate. Just to show houses - I have such a hard time being in two places at once."

"Do you have an office?"

He nodded. "Yes, but you wouldn't be there much. Do you think you'd be good at convincing people to look at houses? You can't actually sell them, of course, but it'd be really helpful for you to show and just...keep track of what's where for me."

Shizuna smiled. "My brothers will tell you I'm scatterbrained, and maybe I am a little bit, but I can be very organized when I have to be."

"Aren't we all like that?" Kurosaki rolled his eyes inwardly. What sort of person actually admitted that they were scatterbrained in a job interview? He glanced at her brother quickly and found him wincing apologetically.

Kurosaki thought up some other questions he thought might possibly be relevant to the position he had made up and then took Shizuna's number so he could call her when he made a decision between all of the "other candidates" he had interviewed.

Ariake pounced on him in a matter of seconds. "She's...she's um..."

"She's nice," Kurosaki supplied, smiling, and gulped the rest of his drink down. "I'll come again."

"She's a good girl."

Kurosaki nodded as he stood up. "I know," he lied.

Kurosaki found an apartment building and bought it, filled out all of the paperwork, and shook his fist at the red tape. It was his third apartment building, but...he had to have some sort of legit reason for all the money he had and this was the easiest thing to manage while he was swindling.

Tomorrow, he'd call Ariake Shizuna and tell her that he would love for her to come by and look at the apartments that he needed her to sell.

If these Ariake's were the one's he was looking for, the real trouble lay in Ariake Shizuna's other brother. Kurosaki was almost positive that the second eldest Ariake had seen him when they had all been younger...that night when their parents had visited each other...when his parents had been killed. Kurosaki eventually wanted Taisuke to recognize him, but not before he had everything laid out, not before he was ready.

Kurosaki wasn't sure how the Ariake parents had died after committing homicide themselves. Katsuragi had never told him, so the swindler attributed it to karma and simply tried to forget about the whole incident.

He sighed. He didn't like remembering, he really didn't. But every night when he woke with nightmares he realized that forgetting did nothing and until his soul was at peace, forgetting about it was impossible.

Which was why he was now about to obliterate the Ariake name.

Katsura was closed when Kurosaki walked inside. The old man was making faces at himself in the mirror as he examined his teeth.

"Why did you sell them to me? I thought you were friends with Ariake, that you sold him information before you sold it to me? You told me that I would have to find them on my own."

Katsuragi gave him a wrinkled look of disdain. "Do you know that that's them?"

"Who else would it be? How many siblings are orphaned and named Ariake?"

"You'd be surprised."

Kurosaki sniffed. "Did you set up the bank like I asked?"

"It's all there." The elder jerked his head back to the bar as he went back to picking his teeth clean.

"Arigato."

Still miffed, Kurosaki stuffed the information into his pocket and walked out, cursing. He would not let the old man get under his skin, he would not. Kurosaki rubbed at his chest. Dammit...insufferable man had given him heart burn.

A/N On my way to Chicago this week and I'm unsure as to my...internet capabilities... However, I have to finish editing my piece for my school's literary magazine. Damn thing is becoming the bane of my existance. Anyway, the point it, prolly won't update til next weekend...or so...gomen!

Swindler Chapter 2

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