Tucked away in the vast woods near the small town Daisuke Niwa grew up in stood an old cottage house. From a distance it had looked to be abandoned, being overgrown with vines but as one grew closer to the structure it became apparent that it wasn't any ordinary building. Even without the trained eye of an artist one would speculate that it was born from a piece of art. Considering who it belonged too, that hypothesis wasn't completely out of the question. The cottage belonged to Sakura Hikari one of the only descendents remaining of the famous artistic family. Even as a Hikari, Sakura had extraordinary power to bring her paintings to life and for that reason her parents tried to keep her hidden from the eyes of a corrupt world, knowing that someday someone might want to abuse her abilities for their own objectives.

As she grew older, she was determined to crack through the 'cage' she had been locked in for her own protection. Sakura began to appear all over the artist scene and was an instant hit, even becoming a household name like some of the most respected artistes in history. As for as her personally was concerned, she was a gentle soul, who wouldn't want to hurt a fly. Though when her life was in danger she wouldn't be a defenseless maiden, instead she would use her god given power to protect herself. The young woman had long black hair that gracefully fell over her shoulders and stunning amethyst hues. Loose fitting clothing was more her style since it was always more comfortable to paint and with them she felt free.

Ever since the incident with the Black Wings, Sakura had a foreboding of terrible things to come. No matter how much she studied the other works of her family, she could not shake the feeling that their magical powers could get out of control again. The only source of their sealing, Dark was gone, sealed inside the Black Wings once again. Sakura sat beside her easel with her unusual paints and brushes by her side. A small smile appeared as she chose the right size brush and began to create a surprising painting. Strokes of black and purple flew on to the empty canvas creating an image of the phantom thief. When she was done, Sakura placed down her brush and picked up the completed picture uttering under her breath, "With this painting, you shall live again, Dark Mousy. This shall be your new beginning and the heart of your very being." A small breath escaped her throat as she placed it back down on its easel and went off to clean her utensils. Sakura knew that her actions would be looked down upon, since in a sense she was playing god, bringing life to someone who was gone. However, deep down she felt she was justified for doing it, considering art always had a mind of its own. With that she shut the lights and walked off to get some sleep.

Several hours later, the painting that Sakura created of Dark suddenly began to glow with a somewhat eerie light. What happened next could only be believed by someone who had seen it firsthand. The image began to ripple and out from it came the form of Dark. The phantom thief always had a knack for a flashy entrance. Landing gracefully on the ground, Dark slowly opened his eyes and looked around the unfamiliar surroundings. For the past two years all he had experienced was the emptiness inside the very artwork he was originally created. "Where am I? How did I get here?" Dark questioned to the abandoned room where he was housed. He turned to look behind him and shock instantly took him over. There stood the picture that Sakura had drawn earlier. His eyes examined the piece and instantly recognized the style, "…this…how can it be?" To double check if it was a dream, the phantom thief pinched several places on his body and as expected it hurt. 'So I'm not dreaming… I'm alive.'

Dark was so caught up in his thoughts to not even sense the presence of Sakura who had arrived in the room several moments before. "How does it feel, Dark Mousy?" The older being spun around as he heard her cool voice come from the darkness. His expression grew rather series and his body became guarded unsure if this individual was friend or foe. "Come out into the light." He demanded still not being able to make out who it was that had spoken to him. Sakura graciously obeyed Dark's command and took several steps into the moon light room. He was still unsure what to think, but seeing that it was a young woman he began to feel a little at ease. "Who are you? Where is this place?"

"So many questions, guess that's only understandable considering what you've been through." Sakura slowly made her way closer to Dark, standing next to the painting. Slowly Dark was putting the pieces together. 'Could she be the one who painted this?' As if she could read his mind she slowly nodded her head in response. "I am indeed the one who gave life to this painting. Please don't feel any ill will toward me, but I'm the one who brought you back to this world. We are in a world I created through my creations and in the world of the living my name is Sakura Hikari." Dark was flabbergasted for the very first time in nearly 400 years. Never before had he meet a Hikari with her level of power, not even from any successor of his other half Krad. Two more obvious questions popped into Dark's mind as he continued to gaze into her eyes. Why had she gave life to him and was it possible that his other half would resurface as well?

Sakura yawned slightly as she made her way over to the other side of the room. She leaned against the marble window ceil and gazed into the vastness of the world around her. "Perhaps it was destiny that was calling for your return or perhaps it was the will of those dearest to you that was calling to me." As she said that images of Daisuke, Risa, and Emiko popped into his mind. He knew that he left them all rather suddenly and all of them must have been very sad to see him leave. "Despite the real reason, I felt it necessary to create this painting and give you life. For a long time, I've had this feeling that terrible times will befall the people of this town and in the end it will be the Hikari's fault for not cleaning up their mess." Regardless of the reason, Dark was overjoyed to get the chance to see his partner again. Being locked away with Krad for the last few years was rather lonely not to mention annoying. "What about my other self? Was he brought to this plane as well?"

The young woman slowly closed her eyes and exhaled a small sigh before turning around to face the phantom thief again. "Of this I'm not certain, though it is not out of the realm of possibly." Sakura then started to make her way toward her bedroom but before crossing the threshold of the room she turned back to Dark. "You are free to live as you please and not bound to having to take orders from anyone. Feel free to stay as long as you like, or if you feel so inclined too, join up with those you left behind. Regardless of your decision, Dark Mousy… please do me one good deed. Protect this world I love. That is all I ask of you in return." With those words the young woman once again disappeared into the darkness of the cottage. Footsteps echoed throughout the structure as she made her way to her bedroom. 'The wheels of fate are turning again… lets just hope my foreboding thoughts become nothing more than an idea.'

Dark made his way over to the window and glanced out of it. His thoughts full of those he cared about. 'Daisuke…soon we will meet again.'

To be continued…

A/n: Hello everyone. I hope you all enjoyed the first chapter of my first multi-chapter D.N Angel fanfiction. I really hated to see Dark leave at the end of the anime so I decided to bring him back. How will Daisuke and everyone react when the phantom thief returns? You will find the answer to that question in the next chapter. Please review and be nice it's my first real try at a D.N Angel story.