Hikaru stood in the doorway of Selena's apartment, frozen in shock at what he saw. At his feet, books, papers, soil from the potted palm tree, and broken glass littered the floor. It got worse when he raised his eyes. Torn curtains, the couch shredded as if giant cat claws had been run across it, the cusions burst open with their stuffing showing. Even the walls looked bad. Claw marks and something red adorned the walls. Wait! Something red? He stepped closer to the wall. Blood. He looked away from it and stepped farther into the room. He saw the bedroom door swaying back and forth slightly, on one hinge, and headed toward that room. He pushed the door open all the way and it let out a long, low creek as it did so. He wasn't prepared for what he saw in there. The walls, were covered in the more redness and claw marks, the bed was stripped of both blankets and pillows, these things lay shredded in a corner. Selena's dresser had been torn to match sticks and her figurienes, all her little mystical figures, lay shattered on the floor. He stood staring at this mess for the longest time. Not exactly sure what he was seeing. What had happened here?

"Hello?" he called, his blood red eyes scanning the room for any sign of Selena. "Onna? Are you here?"

His only responce came in a low moan. He looked toward the sound and spotted a figure, clothed in a white night dress and bloody, lying on the floor near the broken bed. "Selena!" he exclaimed, running over to her and kneeling down beside her. He gently lifted her head into his arms and shook her lightly. "Onna," he said. "Wake up!"

She moaned and opened her eyes halfway. "Hikaru," she slurred when she recognized him.

"Selena," he said, not bothering to call her by her nickname anymore. "What happened here? Who did this?"

She was silent for the longest time as she stared at his face. Finally she grabbed his arm as her eyes widened at the memory. "It was..," she gasped. "It was YOU!" then she fainted dead away.

His own eyes widened in horror. Him? When had he done this? He didn't remember doing this. When he'd left her house around midnight he'd gone straight to the town park to do some training before he went to sleep. He'd never came back. In fact this is what woke him up so early. He'd just fallen asleep when he'd sensed she was in trouble. There was no way he could have done this.

He spotted something on her neck and let her go. He backed away from her, his eyes locked on the mark on the lower part of her neck. Teeth marks. Recognition made his body tremble whether he wanted it to or not. "My... I... No..." he stammered staring at the marks in denial. "This... this.." Those are my teeth marks! How did this happen? What is going on? I... I didn't... He sat there for the longest time, his body frozen in shock and disbelief. There was no way this was real. It had to be a dream. A nightmare he'd wake up from soon.

He heard footsteps pounding into the living room of the apartment and someone shout out. "What the hell? Selena! SELENA!" Running feet. He knew they were coming toward the bedroom but he didn't move. Didn't try to leave. What was the point? Besides; his body wouldn't let him.

A moment later Hojo and Akio entered the room and froze a few steps in. They took in the blood, claw marks, and ruined furniture before they looked down at the floor where they spotted Hikaru sitting against the wall, his face unreadable and Selena lying bloody on the floor a foot away. They came to their own conclusions.

"Hikaru," Akio began, seeing but not wanting to believe.

What could he say? What words could he use? What words would they believe? No words came to mind. He looked away. He knew they wouldn't believe anything he said. It wasn't me!

"What did you do?" Hojo demanded, glaring at Hikaru. "What have you done to Selena?"

It wasn't me!

"Hikaru," Akio said again, still not moving.

"What did you do to Selena?" Hojo shouted, grabbing Hikaru by the front of his cloak and pulling him to his feet.

IT WASN'T ME! he refused to meet the youth's eyes.

Hojo shook him in anger. "What did you do to Selena?" he demanded again, as he shook the Koorime roughly.

"Stop it, Hojo!" Akio ordered, grabbing the raven haired half demon and forcing him to let Hikaru go. Hikaru fell back against the wall and slumped to the floor like an old rag doll. "There's another way," Akio told Hojo.

Hojo nodded as he forced himself to calm down. "Okay," he said, more to himself than Akio. "You're right. I'm sorry." he looked back at Hikaru who was still slumped against the wall. "He's your best friend. You ask him."

"Okay," Akio said nodding. He looked down at Hikaru and asked. "What happened here? What did you do to Selena?"

Nothing... Hikaru's eyes slowly met Akio's. What could he tell Akio? That he'd viciously attacked the onna because she wouldn't sleep with him? That he'd tried to rape her? That hed' tried to kill her because she was pregnant? He couldn't say anything like that. It hadn't been him. He'd never hurt Selena like that. He couldn't. He loved her. She was his baka ferry onna and she was the only one who knew.Nobody knew that they had yet mated. They'd never told anyone else. They weren't going to until the right time. They wouldn't understand and now... thanks to this, they'd never believe them anyway.

He took a deep breath to try to explain how he'd found her. "I-" he began but Hojo punched him in the face. "Don't you say anything!" Hojo shouted, as Akio held him back. "I don't want to hear your lies!"

"Enough Hojo!" the red haired fox demon commanded, turning him around and punching him in the face. "How do you plan on getting anything out of him if you won't let him talk?"

"I don't want to hear a single word from his lying mouth," Hojo shot back, holding his cheek where Akio had hit him. "He has no right to speek after what he's done to her."

"How do you know he was the one who did it?" Akio demanded. "He could have found everything like this."

"I don't think so," Hojo snapped. "This looks like something he'd do."

Hikaru felt a pinch of anger at that comment. Is this what Hojo really thought of him? That he'd tear up the baka onna's apartment and assult her like that? He opened his mouth to say something then shut it. Anything he said would just be used against him.

Akio was still trying to reason with Hojo. "If you want him to pay for what he did call Koemna and ask him to get over here. He'll know what to do."

Yusuek thought that over and nodded. "Okay," he said, then looked at Hikaru and down at Selena. "What about Selena? What about him?"

Akio looked at Hikaru and Selena. "I'll call an ambulence to take Selena to the hospital," he said. His eyes locked with Hikaru's for a moment. "I don't know about Hikaru."

"Well we can't let him out of our sight," Hojo said. "He might run away."

Hikaru glared at the raven haired half demon. He wasn't a coward. He wouldn't run away. He knew if he did he'd just look guilty.

"I don't know," Akio said, looking his friend over. "Maybe you could tie him up or something."

Hikaru stared at the fox in disbelief. Did those words just come from Akio's mouth? Didn't he trust the koorime either? Akio... what are you thinking?

Hojo seemed to be thinking that over. Finally he said. "I'll call Koemna and you do something about Hikaru. I'll be right back," he left the bedroom to make the call, closing the door behind him.

When he was gone Akio leaned over and gently lifted Selena off the floor and set her down on the mattress, all the time keeping a sharp eye on his friend. Then he turned to Hikaru and didn't do anything. He just stood there staring, his eyes trying to make sense out of the whole situation. Hikaru wasn't the type of person do go around hurting defenseless women, especially Selena who had never done a thing to hurt him. In fact Hikaru hadn't even shown any of his violent side in a long time. Lately he seemed calmer and a little more open. He'd even cracked a smile that wasn't cocky the other day. He'd actually been amused by a joke someone had told him. This act of violence was a complete surprise.

"Hikaru," he said slowly.

"It wasn't me," Hikaru interrupted.

"I would like to believe you," Akio began.

"You'd like to believe me?" Hikaru demanded, getting up and facing his friend. "What is that suppost to mean? Don't you believe me? You're my best friend and you don't believe me!?" he looked hurt as he glanced over at Selena. "Why would I want to hurt her?"

"I don't know," Akio said, still looking unsure. "But I do know the claw marks on the wall and that bite mark on Selena's neck belong to you. I've seen how you get when you let your other side take over. Maybe that's what happened here."

"I wasn't even at her apartment when this happened," Hikaru protested. "I was in the city park, training!"

"Did anyone see you there?"

Hikaru looked away. It had been past one in the morning and nobody had walked through the park at that time. "No," he said reluctantly. "It was too late for anyone to see me."

Akio shook his head. Things were getting worse and worse every second.

"But I wasn't here," Hikaru insisted, looking back at Selena. "I wouldn't do something like this. Not to someone who could do me no harm. Especially not a harmless female. I'm not that low."

Akio said nothing but he noticed Hikaru was looking at Selena with an expression he'd never seen before. Hikaru's eyes had a strange look to them. They didn't seem to be reflecting much light and his face was shadowed partway. He didn't know what that face ment but he had a feeling it wasn't good. Unexpectantly he grabbed Hikaru's arm and shoved him face first into the wall.

"Ow!" the koorime grunted feeling plaster smoosh against his skull. He managed to look over his shoulder at Akio. "What are you doing?" he asked, sounding surprised.

Akio held him there as he replied. "I don't think you should touch her."

"Why not?" Hikaru growled, struggling against Akio's hold. "I didn't do anything to her!"

Akio shook his head. He felt Hikaru was lying. He couldn't let his friend hurt another person. Even if it ment losing his and Hikaru's friendship.

"Let me go, fox!" Hikaru yelled at him, wiggling around like a worm on a hook. "Let me go or-"
Akio had to use both hands to hold him still. He realized he couldn't hold his friend for much longer. He also thought Hikaru might attack him if and when he did let go. That wouldn't help either one of them. I guess I have no other choice. the fox thought. I can't have him trying to escape and I can't have him trying to attack Selena again.

Hikaru suddenly felt something creeping around his wrists, locking them together. He scowled, realizing what Akio was doing. Damn fox! He's using Selena's potted plants against me. He shoved himself backwards and almost broke away from Akio's hold but the fox just held on and roughly shoved his friend's face even harder into the wall. This time Hikaru's face hit the plaster so hard he saw stars for a moment before he forced himself to focus again. By then it was too late. Akio had successfuly used Selena's vine plant to tie his friends wrists securily behind his back.

The fox let his friend go and he fell to his knees onto the floor. He looked over his shoulder and glared at his red haired friend, his eyes clearly readable. Traitor!

Akio shook his head regretfully. "I'm sorry," he said, turning from his friend. "I am so sorry. But else could I do?."

Believed me! "Hn!" Hikaru looked away, too angry and hurt to say anything more. I doubt you're really sorry! You're not sorry! You wanted to do this! You don't know me as well as I thought you did. If you did, you'd never think I would do something like that to Selena... Suddenly he was depressed. Selena... he looked up at the ferry girl lying on the bed, bloodly and beaten. How could anyone do this to her? Why would someone want to make it seem like I did it to her? Who would do this? Who would want Hojo and Akio and the others to think I would hurt the one person I love as much as my little sister?

Since Hikaru couldn't hurt Selena now even if he tried, Akio called for an ambulence and, as he waited for it, he decided to see if Hojo had any luck getting ahold of Koemna. He stepped out of Selena's room and as he closed the door behind him. He turned around and saw Hojo scowling at his phone.

"Did you get ahold of him?" the fox asked.

Hojo shook his head. "No," he said. "He's on his honeymoon."

"Oh yeah," Akio said, remembering. 'I'd forgotten he got married yesterday. He won't be back until next week."

"Great!" Hojo groaned. "What are we going to do with him until them?" he ment Hikaru not Koemna.

Akio shook his head. "I don't know," he replied, helplessly. "I ...Hojo..." his friend looked him in the eye. "Do you really think Hikaru would do something like this?"

Hojo frowned as he shook his head. "I don't know," he said. "It doesn't seem like something he would do but what else can I think? He was right in her bedroom looking guilty as sin when we found him. And that fact that he had a bruise on his face and seemed to be having some kind of attack didn't help."

"Hikaru said he was training in the park last night," Akio pointed out. "Maybe he got the bruise then?"

Hojo glared at him. "Don't tell me you believe him!" he exclaimed.

Akio shook his head. "Honestly, I don't know what to believe," he said, looking at the bedroom door for a moment. "He could have, everything seems to point to him, but... it seems way too easy..."

Too easy, Akio thought, glancing back at the closed bedroom door. Way too easy...