Hi there! This is Detra bouncing in to yet a new fandom! I've been a soul eater fan for a long time but didn't know it had ended since I kinda fell out of touch with it. But I have read it to the end, read, not watched, so I don't know anything about the anime. And yet there is going to be a point of contest in the story, I think Chrona is a girl, I've done a bit of research that, unfortunately, does not sway her in either genderal (?) direction. So take that as you will and off we go!

Kid listened intently to Maba with the Judge acting as an interpreter. Since becoming the Shinigami three years ago he had worked closely with the witches and only now started to understand the Grand Witch. Rubbing his face he looked at the two of them "You realize there's no way I can make that announcement?"

The two at Kid's side listened, Spirit watched as well but the other stared at the floor between the groups. The womanizer looked at Maba "If our side were to make any announcement of that type we'd be destroying everything we spent the last three years building!"

"We Witches cannot allow this to happen!" the Judge shouted with a slashing motion to the side "We have worked too hard for these upstarts to decide now to try to break our bonds!"

Kid took off the mask that often hung on the side of his head, his way of trying to get over his symmetry obsession, and put it on the coffee table between the recliner he sat in and the couch where the two witches sat. "What do you think Markus?"

The man standing to his left answered without looking up "Usually I don't give advice, leave that to Stein and everyone else…"

Kid nodded "But I'm asking you."

Markus lowered his head even more "…Are they tied to our problem?"

Maba let out a torrent of words so fast even the Judge had trouble "Er…Um, What is your problem?"

Spirit looked at the current Shinigami who nodded in return "Ever since the Moon fight there's been a huge increase in weapons and meisters going rogue. Eating good souls and trying to obtain the power of the Kishin. We've been dealing with it on our own because we didn't want to have Witches going after them and causing a misunderstanding."

Maba stood and the Judge told what the Grand Witch said "Lady Maba suggest that we make an official speech tomorrow, that we shall help each other deal with our problems, after all it is only time before this city is host to more Witches, some have even married their former enemies!"

The day was beautiful, there were a few clouds in the sky but they stayed away from Death City where the entire world of both weapons/meisters and Witches stood around a platform. Kid stepped forward and the giant screen behind them sparked to life "Everyone…this is not easy to say, but due to the friendship between DWMA and the Witches we have decided to make several things known." he looked to those at his side, Stein and Spirit stood tall and Markus' hand leaned on the hilt of the sword at his waist. All of them nodded "Since the Kishin was released many of our comrades have tried to become like him. We have asked Lady Maba to help."

The crowd started muttering, those who didn't know and those who understood what he was doing by even saying their problems.

Maba and the Judge stepped forward "We have agreed to help Death on the condition that he helps us. Too many of our sisters have started reverting to their old ways, destroying and terrorizing those who are innocent. They are only now going against the peace we have worked so hard to maintain. The Witches have agreed, unanimously, that we must stop them. Yet we cannot kill our sisters." the Judge looked to Maba who nodded with determination in her eye "As such certain Weapons and Meisters will be sent after those who have gone rouge…and become Death Scythes."

The Witches stared on in grim resolution while the others gasped. Markus twitched and in a flash shoved Maba and the Judge closer to Kid. Their indignant cries were cut off by the detonation of the bomb that blew half the stage away.

Creatures much like the clowns of the moon streamed forth from the hole in the ground that was opened and soon Meisters, Weapons and Witches were stuck between fighting and fleeing. Kid's voice echoed clearly across the space "Secure the Square! We cannot let them out!" Liz and Patty fired off shot after shot almost as if to punctuate his statement.

Spirit, now in scythe form, was cutting down the clowns left and right "Stein! Where's Marie?!"

The man using him twisted his neck twice and even those attacking took a step back at the manic look on his face "Oh, she's at home watching the little experiment." he said lackadaisically.

A large clown with a ball theme balanced in front of Markus "HEEEE! What's this? A new person to play with?" it said studying the man in front of him. Markus wore black military boots, jeans, a black sleeveless flak vest and opaque black wrap around sunglasses four rings glittered briefly- on his left hand his pinky and first finger and on his right the thumb and middle, he was dark as well, dark enough that it was obvious his skin was naturally a light bronze, his black hair was in a short pony tail, but most importantly there was a sword strapped to his side.

"No offense but I've got more important things to do than play with a clown." he drew the sword and wings of light flared across his back. The sudden slash split the clown in half as he pushed off the body like a vault to fly off the platform and onto the ground.

Kid screamed "They regenerate slower than the ones on the moon!" everyone who survived that particular battle breathed a sigh of relief.

Soul and Maka danced around their enemies and blasted them apart with grace and finesse while Black Star just blasted them apart with Tsubaki, Kid's enemies were thrown back by the enthusiastic attacks of Liz and Patty.

Stein watched from the perimeter of the square, containment might have been the priority but the invaders were trying to kill the defenders first. "Spirit, what do you think of Markus?"

The scythe in his hands seemed to groan "I don't know! Everyone asks me that but I can't tell, he's good at his job, but he's weird. Kid-sorry Death likes him since he's so blunt and it's almost like he can't lie."

Stein crouched on a roof "And having Excalibur and getting him to shut up is also a big help."

Spirit continued to watch "But he can't use it to nearly it's potential. Not to mention his own…um, handicap."

But no matter what was said the number of clowns was dropping rapidly, already half of them had gone down and the rest were starting to retreat. Markus, the defensive leader of the city, gave a very distinct four note whistle and the defenders let the swarm of defeated run back into their hole before a select group dropped in after them, Markus, Sid, and Maka along with their respective partners followed the tunnel as seven of the city guards took up positions near the hole and the injured were taken for treatment.

Kid looked up to Stein who jumped off the building and landed next to Death "Well that was anticlimactic."

Spirit took his human form and started walking with them as Stein replied "It could have been worse. The enemy knew of the speech and targeted the stage."

Kid stopped for a moment and thought over the implications of that "We need Internal Affairs here."

Sighing Spirit slouched "Well, we don't have IA after BJ died…"

The stitched man said "Have Maka do it but don't make her IA, just having that department made people suspicious."

Night had fallen by the time the squad returned, Sid and Mira went home while Maka, Soul, and Markus returned to Kid. As they entered the Shinigami's room they were silent and the duo was almost depressed. Without saying anything Stein gestured to the couches where they all sat "What did you find?" he asked.

Maka was deep in thought so Soul answered "After about a mile or so they collapsed the tunnel…Somebody found a way to free Chrona. The Insanity wavelength was the same and Black Blood was used as armor."

Kid's eyes betrayed only the smallest bit of confusion "Is she the one behind it?"

Maka screamed "NO! Chrona promised to come back!" taking a few breaths she continued "And the Insanity was only used to control them it didn't create them."

There was a second of silence before Markus spoke, he was waiting for the others to finish before speaking "I believe that it was a witch. Magic or golems are the only way to produce bodies without a long gestation and golems are only programmed for defense…the oldest excluded of course." the silence returned but now it was waiting on him "To free that person they would need a large amount of magic to begin with. Knowing that I think has to be a witch but we don't know who or where they might be. Perhaps we should talk to Lady Maba?"

Kid nodded "I'll call her in the morning. In the mean time get checked out by the doctor, especially you Markus." he amended pointing to the side that didn't completely escape the bomb that started the fight.

At their apartment Maka was sitting on the couch staring at the candle sitting on the table "Blair says that she's taking the entire night shift at the club." Soul said sitting down beside her, one arm went across her shoulders and pulled her into his chest.

Letting out a satisfied hum Maka whispered to him "I hope she's okay…"

Soul kissed her temple "C'mon, that girl's four times tougher than anybody else I know and even if she's not okay at the moment we're gonna get her back and kick the ass of anyone who tries to stop us!"

Laughing at his matter of fact tone it felt like a giant weight was floating off her shoulders "Well, in that case we need to get the gang back together! I think Kilik is on his way back with Fire and Thunder and Ox and Kim have to bow out, they got hurt in a fight with the Squa-Squa Gang in southern Spain."

Soul thought for a moment "Kid'll go easy and I think we can get Markus to go too, Stein needs to stay here though-in case something happens."

"I think Markus and Chrona would get along well together, their both really not confident in themselves." Maka said as she nuzzled into her warm boyfriend. Soon soft breathing was the only sound as their dreams fluttered in the night.

Marcus slowly rolled his shoulders, the stitches pulling uncomfortably against his skin. As the front door to his nearly barren apartment closed the sword at his waist transformed into the annoying imp-like form of Excalibur "Ho ho ho! I did very well today! And you did passably as well."

The meister nodded "And you held up your end of the deal." Taking a seat he allowed the imp to babble on for several more minutes before he asked "I know you've been staying up late writing…"

Excalibur stumbled in his rant "Er…yes I have."

"Why?"

Uncomfortable with where this was going but knowing he couldn't lie to the other the sword answered "I feel like something big is coming. "

"And you don't know if you're going to survive it." Markus concluded.

Moving to kneel by the imp he took off his sunglasses "You know I will do everything I can to protect you, right?" the sword nodded "Even if you're an annoying little thing!" he smirked and the target of his jab laughed as well.

"Shall I tell you of the time I took down the great dragon of the West?"

"Of course" came the listener's reply as his pale white eyes stared up at nothing.