Ghosts of the Past

Chapter 33

So sorry! I lost track of time! Here's the chapter!

"Melinda?" Was the first thing Jim asked when he saw the aforementioned woman. "What's the matter?"

"Nothing." Melinda smiled tiredly, but started to frown. "Everything just doesn't make sense, I guess."

"Did you ever find Kaneki?" Jim blurted.

"How did you-" Melinda was cut off by Jim. "It was obvious."

Melinda sighed. "Then yes, I did."

"Did you ever find your answers?" Jim asked.

Melinda gave a hesitant reply. "Yes."

"What did you find out?" Jim questioned the ghost seer.

"Things aren't what they appear to be, that's for sure." Melinda answered. "I don't think it would be right of me to tell you anyway."

Before much of anything else could be said or asked, a doorbell sounded through the house. Jim hurried to answer it, opening the door to reveal a blonde male.

"Oh! Jim!" The boy exclaimed in surprise. "I need to speak with Melinda."

"How do you know me? How do you know Melinda? Never mind that, who are you?" Jim interrogated the kid.

"Woah!" The boy held his hands up. "Calm down!"

The blonde boy started to explain, but Melinda ran up behind Jim. "Hide!" She shouted in shock. "What are you doing back here?"

"I came to-" Jim cut the blonde off.

"Hide?! You mean the 'Kaneki's best friend' Hide?! The 'ghost' Hide!?"

"Not a ghost anymore." Hide shrugged. "I came back to life, somehow..." The last word was mumbled.

Jim was about to shout again, but Melinda stopped him. "We don't have time for you to freak right now." She turned to Hide. "Come on."

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"So, what did the CCG say?" Melinda asked.

Jim furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, but listened intently, determined to learn what he could about the situation.

"They didn't say much." Hide sighed. "I gave them two options. Leave Kaneki be or I'll stop them anyway possible. They only nodded and walked off. I didn't get an answer."

"That sucks." Melinda murmured.

"You got that right. Anyway, police say they found a body near the place Kaneki's been hiding. I overheard the conversation when I was taking my leave. They also happened to find a piece of wood used as a headstone mark. They've contacted the family and the girl will be given a proper burial, but that all happened in one day. That can't be a coincidence." Hide explained. "The body found near Kaneki's hideout was torn and mangled, obviously a victim of Kaneki's anger. I assume that the person had killed the girl and tried to bury her, but Kaneki caught the guy and made him his meal. Kaneki probably buried the girl in the cemetery afterwards."

"That's sweet of him." Melinda smiled gently.

"Kaneki was always a kind person." Hide agreed.

Jim caught the words 'made him his meal' and panicked. "Wait! Meal?! Did Kaneki cannibalize the guy?!"

"I forgot you were listening." Hide hummed and scanned Jim. "Oops."

Jim face faulted and Melinda sweat dropped.

"But yes," Hide continued. "Kaneki did eat the guy."

"That's sick!" Jim scowled.

"Kaneki doesn't like it anymore than you do." Hide glared at the insult made upon his friend. "He doesn't have a choice. Kaneki's not human, and his kind can only survive off of human flesh. Why do you think the CCG are after him?"

"That's impossible!" Jim exclaimed.

"Ghosts are real," Melinda shrugged. "So why not ghouls?"

"Is that what they're called?" Jim asked hesitantly.

"Yeah." Hide nodded. "You see, Kaneki's a bit more complicated. Unlike normal ghouls, he was human once. He's an artificial ghoul. He only has one kakugan, which is the eye of a ghoul. It's the eye he usually covers up in public. The mask he wears now, the scary one, is the one he uses when hunting, pursuing and/or escaping the CCG."

"Wow." Jim breathed, hand pressed to his forehead.

"Oh, that's not all." Hide said. "Kaneki's also well-known and feared among ghouls and humans. His alias is Centipede, as you've seen from his file. He's an SSS rank ghoul, also classified as a kakuja."

"Kakuja?" Jim asked. "What's that?"

"It's a ghoul who's cannibalized, basically." Hide shrugged. "A ghoul can eat another ghoul to become stronger, but it's a rare occurrence since it's a very disgusting act among ghouls. Kaneki ate his torturer, who was a ghoul, after being tortured for three days straight. He was insane for a while, but he's better now. A kakuja is also stronger, faster, and is more dangerous. They have an extra set of something similar to their kagune, which is a ghoul's normal weapon. The extra weapon allows the ghoul to armor themselves as well. This extra set of kagune is classified as a kakuja, hence the term for the species. Kaneki got the nickname Centipede since his kakuja look like centipedes."

"You seem to know an awful lot about the topic of ghouls." Jim eyed the blonde warily.

"Of course!" Hide cheered. "My best friend is a ghoul and kakuja! Besides, working for the CCG does give you the advantage of having that info."

"How do you work for the CCG, but are best buds with a ghoul?" Jim questioned.

"Simple. I only joined to find Kaneki when he was missing. My plan was to stay with them even after I found him, just to give him a heads up on the organization's actions. I never got that far, and I won't be able to now either, since I've already gone and told the CCG that little fact. It doesn't matter since any trust they had in me broke the moment I confessed I was friends with Centipede." Hide admitted.

"Doesn't that hurt?" Melinda asked the boy.

"Not really." Hide confessed. "I mean, I never trusted them. I tolerated them for the sake of Kaneki, but that was it."

"This is a lot to take in." Jim rubbed his temples.

"Kaneki told me himself, since I was too stubborn to leave him alone. Almost got eaten by a stray ghoul, too. Luckily, Kaneki saved me." Melinda told the man sheepishly.

"What?! You never told me that!" Jim shouted.

"I didn't want to worry you." Melinda said in a guilty voice.

"I'm sorry. I'm just overwhelmed." Jim sighed as he calmed down. "I'm glad you're okay. I'll have to thank Kaneki the next time I see him."

"Kaneki doesn't need any thanks." Hide laughed lightly. "He was always doing nice things, being the secret hero whenever he could. He never expected anything in return. It was sad, really. He was the nicest kid I knew. He never knew his dad, his mom died when he was ten. When he went to live with his aunt, she abused him."

"That kid had to go through more than any other people I've met combined." Jim frowned.

"It wasn't the best life," Hide admitted. "but Kaneki always told me that I made living worth it. I'm happy I could be the one that pulled him through."

"I am, too, Hide." Melinda smiled. "Even if Kaneki and you caused trouble for us, I'm grateful that Kaneki lived. I'm grateful he has such a good person to support him."

"Thanks." Hide closed his eyes. "Now, on to the reason I'm here. I don't exactly remember where Kaneki is hiding since I always flashed there before, and my next stop is his hideout."

A pause was emitted before Hide spoke again.

"I want you to help me find him."

Hope you enjoyed this chapter! Bye my doggies!