Hello and thank you for reading my story! This is my very first Spiral fic. (Meep!) I've really started to like this show and this idea just sort of came to me one night. I am very anxious to see if people like it. I hope people like it.

I was going to make it a one-shot but it kind of ran away from me. So I'm making it a multi-chapter. Anyway, I'll let you start reading the story and hope that you like it.

Disclaimer: I do not own Spiral -Suiri no Kizuna- or any related characters. They belong to Kyo Shinodaira and Eita Mizuno. I do own the plotline though and ask that you don't use or copy it without my permission. Thank you.

This story is rated T (13+) for language, violence, suicidal thoughts/actions, inexplicit content and dangerous situations.

It was hard to say exactly what went wrong. It was easily preventable, yet completely unavoidable. And it could have happened to anyone in the world, anyone at all. Any of the people that had been walking down the sidewalk, staring through windows, talking and laughing, as they were passed by. Anyone they knew, anyone they didn't know. It could have been any other person but them.

But it didn't happen to any other person, it didn't happen to same stranger they passed on the street or a person they know, it happened to them.

The night sky stood dark and ominous in the moonless black light. The dim stars were the only things that stood out against it, shining through the dark in a vain attempt to light up the skies. City lights assisted them, softening the sinister look of the night and giving it a misty dimness. It was late, vary late. The misty dark was so thick that only the street lights could break through it. It made a trail through the shadows for the few people that wandered the streets to follow, like the two figures that slowly made they're way up the street. Their footsteps were the only sounds that echoed through the night air. The tallest of the two seemed to be doing the leading. A young boy of about seventeen with short brown hair.

Nobody could see them. At this time and place, the area they walked was deserted of all other people. It was a back road that lead into the city and sparing a few strays it was abandoned of most other life in the night. He was grateful for that. In the condition they were both in it would be a rather unpleasant situation if someone saw them. Chances were the police would get involved and that would make things worst then they already were.

Ayumu Narumi stared ahead at the dark as they walked. A deep frown was on his face as he thought. The orange colored lights from the street posts shined down on him, casting shadows across his face and making his eyes looking darker then they really were. As he looked up at the street lights that lead them he debated whether to be grateful for the lit trail, allowing him to see where they were going, or to wish that they were walking in darkness to ease his worry of being seen.

He wished this was like any other Saturday night, that he was simply walking Hiyono as far home as she would allow because she stayed over at the school journalist office or his place too long. It wasn't because he thought she couldn't take care of herself, she could do that fine, but just to make sure she got home safely. Yes, any other Saturday would be a thousand times better then this one.

But this wasn't any other Saturday night. It was so far from it in fact that he had to wonder if there would ever be a normal one again. The near complete silence was what really made this fact obvious. Normally Hiyono would be talking about something as they walked while he half listened, but now she hadn't said anything for the longest time.

Thinking of the energetic girl, he glanced to his side. She was walking beside him, following whatever pace he set in silence. He had done this more then once in the last few hours, almost as if to make sure she was really there and he wasn't just imagining her. And every time he did look at her he felt a sick, twisting feeling in his stomach, as if his insides were shriveling into nothing.

Even though she was walking right beside him, he felt as if she wasn't there. Although a part of him tried to say it was just the effect of the lights, there was no denying the blank, emotionless look her face and eyes held. He had noticed it a few hours ago, when things had calmed down, after she tripped. He tried to talk to her, to get her to say or do anything. But no matter what he did she wouldn't respond. She was lost deep in a part of her own mind, a part he wasn't sure she should be at.

He could normally read her facial expressions fairly easy. But right now there was nothing to read other then a dazed stare. She didn't even seem aware of her surroundings, probably didn't even realize where they were. He didn't even want to think about what might have happened if he wasn't guiding her down the road, holding her shoulders to keep her moving and stop her when needed. She probably wouldn't have gotten away, probably would have been frozen in place for hours. If he hadn't urged her forward, she would probably still be back there.

'Don't think about it right now. Just focus on getting home.'

Ayumu lead Hiyono around several turns as the lit trail lead them into a more populated yet sleeping part of town. The sidewalk started to grow brighter, more lights shining before them. His strained nervous tingled, making him more paranoid then he knew he needed to be. He couldn't help but glance up at the houses and apartments they passed. The black windows almost seemed to be watching them, threatening them. He couldn't see any lights on inside, but that didn't mean someone wasn't watching them.

'You're over thinking. No one is going to be up at this time.' He knew his paranoia was foolish, illogical almost. No one was up this late at night and if they were up, they were at work. Even if someone was up, even if someone saw them through the black glass, chances were they wouldn't notice anything suspicious. 'That's right.' He told himself. 'It's too dark out and the street lights can warp anything. They would just think it was a trick of light, their vision distorted by the dark.'

Even in his mind the words sounded empty and meaningless. Irrational fear kept stalking his thoughts. He knew part of it was due to fatigue. He was exhausted and every muscle in his body seemed sore. Every step seemed to take a little more strength then the last and it tired him that much more. He just wanted to stop and rest, but he knew they had to keep walking. They had to get somewhere even remotely safe, somewhere that didn't feel so in the open and exposed.

Another glace up, but this time he told himself it was the last. Even if someone saw them, he was sure they wouldn't assume anything too severe. Maybe they would think they were just two kids who had been out late partying. This thought actually brought a new worry to mind. They might not have been partying, but others might have. He was sure Hiyono had mentioned some students from school she believed were going to get themselves killed before graduation. What if some were out now? What if they ran into them? The thought of trying to explain their condition was not a pleasant one. He quickened the pace some. They had to hurry. He wasn't going to feel completely safe until they were inside a building.

He tried to push the worries back and focus on keeping their pace steady. They were almost to his place. Once they got there he knew his worry would start to die. They would be able to rest and treat their injures. He would be able to try and think more clearly. Try and figure out what to do next.

He wandered how long they had been walking. It had to have been some number of hours by now. They stayed on the back streets and allies in order to lower their chances of being seen by some one. That, of course, made their long journey home even longer.

This was without a doubt something he never thought would happen. Even after everything that's happened with the blade children, even after all his speculations of things that could go wrong, nothing could have prepared either of them for what happened tonight. . .

'Finally, we're here.'

The apartment building loomed over them. He could already feel a small amount of relief just at the sight. They had finally arrived at his apartment, somewhere he knew they would both be safe. And thank god no one was home and wouldn't be for a few days. Madoka was away on a business trip. The police would probably be easier to deal with then the questions they would get from her.

"We're here, Hiyono. Just a little further..." His voice sounded tired and harsh to him. It scratched at his throat as he spoke, shooting dull pain up and down it. He didn't know why he spoke out loud, he knew she wasn't paying attention to his words. Maybe it was just for the sake of hearing his own voice or to break the ominous silence that had been in place for too long. He lead her up the first set of stairs, making sure she actually walked up them and didn't trip and fall. There was still one last leg, one last worry, before he felt they were safe.

He directed her down the hall, making they're way silently towards the stairs. 'Don't let anyone see us.' He thought desperately, his nerves almost making him crazy. They were almost there. But even now he could see someone walking around the corner and finding them. How would he possibly explain if that happened?

'You wouldn't be able to.' The words rang as true as the fact that it was night. That's right, there wouldn't be any possible way for him to explain this. The night air stung at his nose as they stepped out onto the balcony. Their feet whispered against the ground as they passed closed doors and windows. 'Don't let anyone see us, please.'

They stopped in front of the door. A strange sense of relief washed over Ayumu as he let go of her and moved to unlock it. He dug into his pockets, searching for his key. He pulled it out and reached for the door, unlocking it while he tried to ignore the icy chill the handle seemed to hold. He opened it, wishing that he wasn't coming home this late for all the reasons he had to. He reached behind him and took hold of Hiyono's wrist, gently urging her inside.

When he finally looked inside a black wall greeted them. Since no one was home there were no lights on and the whole house was pitch-black. Ayumu clicked on the hall light, destroying the black wall. He closed the door, leaning back on it with closed eyes to think. The silence in the house was even heavier then outside. It was as if closing the front door had cut them off from the outside world, something that was both comforting and unsettling at once.

Another cause for the weighting silence was the uncertainty of what to do next. The whole time they were walking he tried to figure out a plan of what to do. Unfortunately he didn't come up with much. The two simply stood in the hall. Both were quiet, nether making any moves to do anything. Ayumu opened his eyes to watch Hiyono, hoping she would do or say something, anything. But she merely continued to stare off into space. Her golden eyes looked dull and lifeless compared to the sparkle that use to be there.

None of this was suppose to happen, none of it. If he had even the slightest hunch that it would he never would have told her to meet him there. He never wanted something like this to happen, especially to Hiyono. He knew that her being around him all the time would lead to trouble someday. Trouble always seemed to follow him and she was right there with him in the line of fire. Before though, whenever she did get caught up in it he had always been able to at save her, to get her out before anything serious happened to her.

Not this time. This time it was different. Who would have known that in trying to protect her she would be the one that saved him this time? Which in turn, lead to her current condition. . .

Ayumu stepped away from the door, kicking off his shoes as he started down the hall. He only got a few feet when he glanced over to see his face in the mirror that hung on the wall. If he didn't know better, he could almost think the person staring back at him was a stranger. Mud, dirt and other questionable substances were caked to his face, half dry. If he looked down he knew he would find his clothes in a similar state, only worse. Some dried blood was mixed with the filth on the side of his face. Hot stinging spread through it when he brushed his fingers a crossed it. He realized that the "filth" wasn't so much dirt as it was a darkening burse. He could also see a ring of burses along his neck. Safe to say he might have a little difficulty swallowing for a few days. And he was sure that when he did a more entire search, he would find even more injures.

Staring at himself brought to mind another thought and he turned around towards Hiyono. She was only now beginning to take off her shoes. He had a feeling the action was out of habit rather then thought. One clue to this was the fact that she wasn't even looking at her feet but somewhere along the wall, that blank look still in place.

If he thought he looked bad, it was nothing compared to Hiyono. Like himself, she was also covered in dirt and grim. The only injury he could see was a dark burse showing along her right leg. It almost looked like purple ink had been smeared onto her skin. Even if she didn't have any other injures like he did, she still seemed worse off. Her golden hair which always seemed to be in braids was undone, hanging around her face almost like a curtain. It looked dull and dirty against the hall light. But what really had her looking worse then him was the blood. It was mixed half dry now with the mud and grime that covered her. It was even tangled in her hair and some streaks could be seen smeared across her face.

Ayumu slight chewed on his tongue as he waged a mental battle in his head. They both needed to take a shower. To walk around looking like they did was pointless, uncalled for really. Plus, he didn't want Hiyono to stay in those clothes. She was traumatized enough and staying in that dirt and blood stained outfit would only do more harm.

Thing was though, he wasn't sure if Hiyono was capable of taking a shower in the state she was in. He wasn't even sure about leaving her alone. He didn't know why he felt like that, but something in his gut got a bad feeling when he thought of the action. But then if she did take a shower it could help get her out of her thoughts if even just a short time.

"Hiyono." He wasn't surprised when she didn't answer. It still hurt to talk. He cleared his throat as carefully as possible before speaking again, raising his voice a little. "Hiyono." He walked back over to her, stopping beside her. He took a hold her shoulders and turned her towards him. This time when he said her name, he said it even loader.

She blinked, finally looking up at his face. It was the first time she had made eye contact with him in the past several hours. But although she was looking at him, he felt like she wasn't really looking at him. It was like she was staring straight through him at the wall.

"You need to change your clothes, Hiyono." He didn't let go of her shoulders as he spoke. It felt like if he let go she would just slip back to where ever it was in her mind that she went. "I can get some of mine for you to borrow, but first you need to take a shower."

It felt strange to hear his voice so slow and calm, that harshness from the pain still lingering in it and his throat. He really didn't expect Hiyono to hear what he said, in fact he even repeated himself. But then she slowly nodded. Her mouth opened partly, as if contemplating saying something, then she shut it. She shrugged his hands off her shoulders and walked passed him towards the bathroom. Even her footsteps seemed unnaturally quiet.

Ayumu turned to follow her. He knew he should feel relieved that she had actually responded to something he said. For the past few hours he wondered if there was anything he could say to get her to react. He should feel relived, but he couldn't shake that growing worry. He still felt objection to leaving her alone. But there was no getting around the fact that they both need to take a shower.

He moved a head of her and walked into the bathroom. Clicking on the light, he opened up the cabinet and grabbed a towel. He then turned around to face Hiyono. She was staring at the floor, her tangled hair blocking her face from view.

"You can use this shower." Ayumu said, walking pass her to leave. "I'll use the one in my sister's bedroom." Again, Hiyono just gave a slight nod. He paused for a moment at the doorway, staring at her back. His hand rested on the door handle, waiting for the command to shut the door. That doubt was nagging at him stronger now and he was slightly wishing he hadn't thought of the showers. Was it really okay to leave her alone in her condition?

'You're over thinking it,' he thought, making himself shut the door. Instead of heading for the shower though he leaned with his back against the hall wall. He waited until he heard water running from the shower to even consider leaving to take his own. He looked up at the ceiling, knowing he needed to think of something to do. It wasn't like him to be making things up as he went, wasn't normal. But then, this wasn't a normal situation. It wasn't a normal Saturday night. It was far from it.

Ayumu blinked as his gaze at the ceiling started to blur. He pushed himself away from the wall, rubbing his eyes. He headed towards his bedroom, needing some clean clothes. He wanted to grab them before starting his shower. He wanted it to be a quick one. The less time Hiyono spent by herself, the better he would feel.

He still hadn't figured out what it was that went wrong, how this could have possibly happened. He should have been able to expect it, should have been able to keep her safe.
He should have been able to prevent it completely and yet, there was nothing he could have done. . . .

Author's Note: And that's the first chapter. I think I have fixed it up six times since I first published it. Even now I worry how it turned out. . .

Thank you for at least looking at my story. I hope you like it enough to want to keep reading.