Don't own anything. I apologize to anyone from Japan if I'm describing areas wrong. I have never been to Japan. Well, I was once in Tokyo International Airport during a layover to China but I didn't go anywhere. What little I know are from travel shows.

Honestly, I should be grading papers but I decided to finish this. The grades were depressing me.

Maisy looked around her room to make sure she hadn't left anything. After being satisfied she pulled her carry-on and left. She didn't bother saying good-bye to her director. They were parting on a sour note anyway. She saw the housekeeper.

"Good-bye, I'll miss you." She said hugging the small woman.

The housekeeper misty eyed, pronounced a blessing," May God give you success on your mission."

Maisy smiled. It took ten years but she finally earned the trust of the people she was working with… except for the director. He forbade her to go look for her boy. It was then she realized that she can no longer in good conscience listen to him anymore. Not in regards to the boy anyway. She sent in her resignation, packed her bag, and bought a ticket to Tokyo. The people told her that the best detectives were in Tokyo and if she wanted to find the boy she needed to go hire one of them. So she withdrew her life savings, bought a one-way ticket to Tokyo, and headed to the airport. It was already a long shot. The police here were too busy with an incident at the American base to worry about one run-away. Taking a taxi to the airport and getting into the terminal was uneventful. But when she got on her plane, she had a nagging feeling someone was watching her. She, however, couldn't see who it was. During the flight she went to the back of the plane to go to the bathroom and noticed someone who looked like her boy. She looked again but he had his face buried in a magazine, although she found it strange that he was holding it upside down. She dismissed it and assumed that she was just seeing things. Finally, the plane landed. She hurriedly got off so she can get the search underway. As she was about to hail a taxi out of the corner of her eye she saw the boy again. This time his face wasn't entirely covered. Despite the cap Maisy could tell it was him. She started to run over when the elderly man he was with pushed him aside. Out came a sword as men in business suits began shooting. The "old" man who no longer looked old blocked each bullet with ease. Maisy froze. She was beyond confused and truth be told a little scared, especially when she saw one of the men approach her boy with his gun aimed straight at him.

Six looked to see if Rebecca was still listening. Judging by how wide her eyes were, he knew he still had her attention. He resumed his story.

I thought it was over but the gunman was suddenly taken down by a flying suitcase. The carry-on caught him on the side of his head.

"Don't touch my boy!" screamed Maisy.

I looked up in surprise at the sound of her voice. She grabbed me and hauled me up by my arm. She was surprisingly strong for someone so petite. She dragged me and her suitcase down the block away from the shootout. I let her tow me about ten feet before I had the presence of mind to plant my feet to stop her.

"I can't leave my master!" I insisted.

"What? Who?" Maisy looked at me incredulously.

"Please," I begged her nodding my head back to the fight. "We have to help him."

Maisy paused a moment and seemed to be going through an internal struggle. She looked around and spotted a man getting out of a Cadillac Eldorado to see what was going on. Maisy opened the passenger door and slid in to the driver's side. I got in the back seat with her carry-on. She slammed the driver's side door and drove off before the man even knew what was happening. We heard cursing in Japanese. Maisy drove straight at the gunmen scattering them. She slowed down but never fully stopped.

"Get in!" She yelled to my Master.

My Master yanked open the passenger side door and dove in as Maisy peeled out of the terminal. The gunmen opened fire on us.

"Stay down!" Maisy growled at us.

My master looked at me. "Who's this?"

"It's complicated. But I asked her to help us." I replied.

"Hey, I'm the one who should be asking the questions." Maisy said as she began driving normally. Just when she did, a shot hit the back window shattering it. I looked back. Three black sedans were giving chase.

"Sugar!" Maisy sped up again. She began weaving in and out of traffic. "Sweetie, you better put on your seat belt and keep your head low." Maisy was embarrassing me as she added, "Did any of the glass hit you? Are you okay?"

My master cocked an eyebrow at me and I turned bright red.

"Look, I don't know what he told you." Maisy noticed the interchange and was addressing my Master, "But he belongs with me."

"You sent me back to the orphanage." I reminded her.

I saw Maisy cringe and I regretted it immediately.

"That was a mistake." She said. "I promise you, I'll never let anyone take you away again."

Something warm started in my chest and spread through me as I let her words sink in. Another shot rang out as we all ducked.

My Master cleared his throat, "That's … nice… but the fact of the matter is there are people trying to kill us."

"Trying to lose them. It would help if I knew where I was going." Maisy glared at the mercenary.

My Master caught the hint. "Get off at the next exit then follow the signs to the bridge."

Maisy nodded and floored it. Shots still rang out. My Master pulled his bag open and took out a gun. He leaned out the window and fired one shot. There was a squeal of brakes as the car careened out of control and crashed into the other car giving chase.

Luckily, there were no other cars on the road anymore. Drivers were wise enough to give us a wide berth. But there was one more car to lose. Master fired a few more times but the car dodged each one. Eventually, the gun ran out of ammo. My master threw it at the car in frustration. Maisy exited and was driving towards the bridge.

"Umm, I don't mean to be a killjoy but we're heading for a draw bridge." Maisy interrupted.

"I know, "My Master answered her rummaging through the bag for another weapon.

"It's open." She said.

"What?" My Master looked up and cursed.

"Hey, watch your language. There's a minor in here." Maisy said not taking her eyes off the road.

My Master blinked at her.

"I got an idea. " Maisy said as she pressed the accelerator.

"What are you doing?" My Master asked as we were thrown back.

"Works in the movies." Maisy answered.

My Master's eyes grew big as he realized what she was about to do. We braced ourselves.

Maisy crashed through the wooden arm as the bridge operator yelled.

The car drove up the incline and flew off the edge, never once slowing down. Everything seemed to move in slow motion as we flew over the gap between the bridges. Then we landed on the other side with a hard thud the back wheel just making it. Maisy kept driving as if nothing happened. I looked back. The car that was following us wasn't so lucky. The man must have chickened out the last second because the car was now hanging off the edge on the other side.

"What do you know," Maisy said cheerfully, "It worked."

My Master just looked at her stunned. I was trying to get my heart out of my throat.

"Where to now?" She asked.

My Master shook his head as if to clear it. He gave her directions and eventually we made it to the dilapidated side of town. My Master led us down a dead end alley way of some abandoned buildings. But as we drove down the darkened pathway the wall at the end slid open revealing a secret area.

Maisy drove in as the wall slid closed. Once inside lights automatically turned on. We stepped out of the car. Maisy eyed my Master suspiciously.

"Okay now what?" She asked.

"Well, I can kill you." He deadpanned.

I must have had a panicked look on my face when my Master turned to me, "I'm just kidding… maybe."

Maisy snorted, "I'm not scared."

My Master returned, "Well, you should be. I am the most dangerous man on the planet." He calmly walked over to a computer console.

"I'm sure you are. But that means little to me. "

My Master turned to study Maisy. He nodded, "I can tell. It's not everyday I have someone telling me what to do."

"Well, if it's all the same to you. I'll be taking my boy and leaving you to go… do whatever you usually do."

"It's not that easy. They've seen you now and probably will be after you too."

Maisy rolled her eyes and sighed. "Why are things never easy?" She said to no one in particular. She looked at him, "So what do we do to get them off our backs?"

"Kill them." He answered nonchalantly.

"You mean you're going to kill them. You don't expect me or him to do it?"

"You mean you're not outraged by the solution?"

"Well, it is your profession. I don't judge. However, you can't expect us to be apart of it."

"I'm not going with you. I asked to go with him." I heard my voice squeak out to Maisy.

Maisy's eyes clouded over. She knelt before me. "Sweetie, you're just a little boy. You can't mean to go with…" Maisy was at a loss for a word. "This gentleman. I'm pretty sure he's not use to raising children."

"I'm not. " My Master admitted, "But I train students."

"To do what? I'm pretty sure it's not in etiquette." Maisy glared at him.

"Well, I do teach some of that. You do need to mind your manners when trying to infiltrate… certain functions."

Maisy stared at him for a second before turning to me, "I'm pretty sure he's a killer, probably cold-blooded, and I don't want you to live that kind of life." She was no longer trying to be polite.

My Master shrugged. "It doesn't matter to me but I do believe the decision belongs to him."

"He's just a boy! He doesn't understand the ramifications of this decision!" Maisy turned her ire at him.

My Master turned to me and asked me, "Hiko, do you understand that if you go with me I will train you till you drop, your bones will ache, your body will be in pain, and you will most likely be hurt. When you grow up you will go to anyplace they ask you for money. You will sometimes perform odious tasks. But you will lead your own life, you won't answer to anyone, and you will have the fear and respect of everyone."

"Except me. Because what is that cost to your soul?" Maisy said quietly.

I looked between the two of them. I was torn. On the one hand, I wanted most of the things my Master had said. The other part wanted to go with Maisy. But I also knew Maisy was a law abiding person. She would not live outside the laws and there was no way the government would ever see fit to let Maisy raise me. I would be back at the orphanage.

Before I could answer we heard gunfire outside the building.

"How?" My Master ran to the security cameras. He turned them on and saw the men outside the building. Since they didn't know which one we were in they were searching each one. A hapless person probably got in their way. He turned and scowled. He ran to the car and pulled out his bag. He pulled everything out and searched through each item carefully. When not finding anything, he ran to a desk and pulled out a strange looking device with an antenna attached. He passed the device over the bag and its items. When the machine started beeping he muttered something inaudible under his breath. I guess he was being mindful of me like Maisy asked. He pulled the cassettes out.

" This is coated with a slightly radioactive substance. That's how they were able to trace us."

Instead of being frightened like I expected her to be, Maisy frowned. "Can we get rid of those things then?"

"I made copies but I wanted to keep the original. Still…" He grabbed the cassettes and threw them down a chute.

"This should buy us some time."

He grabbed a gun and tossed it to Maisy. Maisy caught it. "Can you use that?"

Maisy nodded. "I grew up in Montana. We like to hunt."

"Good, take the boy and get out of here. I'll buy some time." My Master pressed a button and a wall slip open to reveal a set of stairs leading up.

"This leads to the roof. It's connected to the building next door. You can get out that way."

"Master, I won't leave you." I said adamantly.

He had a faint smile. "Hiko, you won't be any use. You are not trained to fight and will only get in the way. Maybe when we meet again…" He left the last part unsaid.

Maisy pulled two things from her carry-on and shoved them into her jacket pocket. She then grabbed me and pushed me toward the stairs. She looked back briefly at my Master and said, "Be careful." Then we ran up the stairs.

The stairs were steep and seemed to go one forever. When we finally reached the top we were both out of breath. Maisy pushed the roof door open and stepped out. After checking to see if the coast was clear we made our way to the adjacent building. We heard gunfire and shouting from below.

"He'll be okay. " Maisy said reassuringly. I nodded not feeling as confident as her. Maisy walked across some boards that connected the two buildings together. As I was walking across an explosion shook both buildings and I loss my balance. Maisy grabbed my shirt and pulled me up. She grabbed me in a tight hug. "Don't ever do that again." She admonished me. I wondered how I was to avoid doing that again and if I ever would have to do that again. Maisy and I walked over to the edge of the building. We peered down. It was relatively quiet compared to the noises coming from the other side. We climbed down the annulated drainage pipe and made it to the ground. Maisy was on the ground first. I was slower and clumsier in my movements and my pants kept getting caught on the sharp corners. When I finally made it down we had lost precious time. Maisy grabbed my hand and we started running down a different alley way in the direction opposite the noise. I was tired and had a hard time running. My legs felt like molasses and Maisy was almost dragging me.

Suddenly bullets shot across our path. Apparently, one of the men was on the other side as well. Maisy grabbed me and threw me behind some dumpsters. She returned fire.

She must have had good aim because the firing stopped. She picked me up and dragged me again. I stumbled and fell. Maisy picked me up and told me to get on her back. I felt foolish getting a piggy-back ride. But I really couldn't run anymore. She made it to the main street. It was getting dark and the last streaks of light were filtering through the buildings. Maisy put me down and went to see if she could find us transportation out of the area. Another explosion rocked the building and the streets. The condemned building I was standing next to shook and started to come down on me. I froze unable to move a limb no matter how much my brain screamed to go. Just before I was crushed, Maisy grabbed me and swung me like a discus out of the way. I must have flown several feet and hit my head on something because I blacked out.

When I came to, I saw my Master bent over something. I got up rather shakily and stumbled over to see what it was. To my horror it was Maisy. She hadn't been able to get out of the way of the falling building. She was still conscious and smiled when she saw me. I must have started crying because she made soothing noises, "Shhh, it's okay. Everything's going to be okay." Her hand reached out to touch the side of my face. "I love you." Then her hand fell. I grabbed it and held it to my face willing her move but no matter how much I wished, she was never going to move again. My Master reached out and closed her still open eyes. He got up and started to walk away.

After he took a few steps, he turned around, "You coming, Hiko?"

I dropped her hand and got up but I no longer felt like I was in my body. Someone else now walked in it. When Maisy died, part of me also did.

The mercenary was confounded. The boy said he was alone but here was this blond lady risking her life to save his just because the boy had asked her to. He looked at the boy who looked beyond embarrass, a blush adorning his usually pale face. On top of that this woman was not afraid of him. Well, he suppose he had to make the best of things. If she was willing to get him out of this tight jam who was he to stop her. So he gave her directions and proceeded to take care of the cars giving chase. He managed to take out two of them but the third one had a skilled driver. He was unable to stop it before he ran out of bullets. As he was looking for another weapon, the woman informed him that the draw bridge was raised. He was not counting on that. He also was not counting on her correcting his language or being crazy enough to try to jump the open bridge. The fact that they had survived it made her an even bigger enigma. This strange woman was definitely someone he wanted to learn more about.

Back at his safe house he realized she wanted to take his newest student away. Although he was not really attached to him, he did suddenly feel competitive. He wanted the boy to choose him, not that he really wanted to take the time to raise a child which is what he'd essentially be doing. Before the boy could choose, however, those men showed up. He cursed his stupidity, albeit under his breath since he didn't want to upset the blond, when he realized that the cassettes were tagged. No wonder those men found him so easily. Probably the only reason the Americans hadn't tracked him yet was because they were still reeling from the chaos he caused at their base.

He wasn't sure why he cared for their safety but he tossed a gun to the blond and told her how to get herself and the boy out of there. He would deal with the consequences of his mistake. He was touched when the boy refused to leave but honestly, what could he do? The mercenary was surprised by his sudden sentimentality. It was not like him at all. Maybe he was getting old. He was even more surprised that when Maisy told him to be careful that he almost blushed. Why on earth would he care what she said? It was all very confusing not to mention he now had to go deal with some of the world's deadliest scums of the earth. He quickly pushed away any distracting thought and proceeded to get the necessary equipment to deal with his current problem.

Using another secret entrance he managed to sneak up behind the men. They were distracted when they found the cassettes that he threw down the chute. He easily took out several before they even realized he was there. Then the gun fire started. He easily took care of the bullets. When one of them launched a shoulder held missile at him, a little overkill admittedly, he bent backwards low as the missile passed over him. He managed to grab it and send it back at them. The men scattered and the missile hit the building. The surrounding buildings shook and loose building pieces rained down on the thugs. The mercenary took advantage of the distraction and took out a few more men with his katana. The thugs started to panic. They had never before come upon someone as formidable as him. He looked unstoppable. Because of that some started to over react. One of them started to fire indiscriminately. He actually helped the mercenary by cutting down some of his own men. But the bullets didn't stop the mercenary as he made his way to the hapless idiot. In a few seconds the gangster was soaked in his own blood. Unfortunately, one of his stray bullets had hit the gas tank of one of the cars. A fire had somehow started and was quickly spreading. The mercenary knew what would happen if the fire reached the pool of gas forming underneath the car. He immediately cut down a few more men in his bid to clear out of the area. As he had expected there was a great explosion. What he had not expected was that the explosion would bring down a nearby building. The explosion took care of the rest of the thugs. Any remaining men quickly gave up and fled. But he was filled with a sense of foreboding rather than relief. His instincts told him he had better check out the ruins of the fallen building.

A feeling of dread filled him when he saw the boy lying a few feet away from the debris and the woman was no where to be seen… until he passed by the rubble. He saw a piece of her jacket sticking out between two large pieces of concrete. He shoved the pieces out of the way. She was lying in the ruins barely breathing. He gently lifted her up. She opened her eyes and looked at him. He felt his breath catch.

"Promise me... promise me, you'll take care of him." Her voice was barely above a whisper. She fumbled in her jacket pocket and placed in his hands a leather-bound notebook and an envelope. "Please give this to him." She looked at him with passionate eyes, body tense. "Promise me."

For some reason the hardened mercenary nodded and answered softly, "I promise."

She relaxed and he could tell from years of experience that she was not long for this world. He breath became more shallow and ragged. Suddenly, the boy appeared at his elbow. He had not wanted the boy to see her but it was too late. He collapsed next to her, sobs rising from his chest. He watched her try to comfort him, lightly touching his face as he wept over her. Then the inevitable happened. Her hand slipped down and the light left her eyes. He reached out to close those lifeless lids, a sign of respect. She looked peaceful as if she was asleep. He got up and started back to the safe house. He turned to the boy to urge him to come with him. The boy automatically got up. When the Master saw his eyes his chest tightened. Those were no longer the eyes of a little naïve boy. Those were the eyes of a potential killer, soulless and full of rage.

Holiday stared at Six's back. Somewhere in the middle of the story he had gotten up and was leaning on the file cabinets on one arm with his back facing her. His voice was still emotionless but he wouldn't look at her. She realized how painful this was for him. He had never spoken about Maisy before and now she knew why. Her death affected him more than anything else in his life. Rebecca swallowed and took a deep breath before saying, "I'm sorry."

Six merely acknowledge her by nodding. He didn't trust his voice at the moment. It wouldn't do for her to see him break. He was not trying to elicit pity. He was just trying to give her a glimpse of what made him the way he was and what was about to come. When he finally gained enough control. He turned to face Rebecca.

"That's only the beginning."

Rebecca nodded, "I figured."

"Do you want me to continue?"

"Please do."

Now came the hard part, what part to tell her and what part had to be left out for the sake of her safety.