Iris's p.o.v****

I was shoved completely against the wall, knees up and glaring at the intruding man who sat so non-chalantly in front of me on the matress, arm resting on his knee and giving me a calm and amused look. The same look he gave me the second time I saw him, the look he gave to those cops. A look of confidence, a look of defiance.

But at the time it wasn't nearly as captivating as it had been yesterday.

"Get out!"I shouted, noticing that no pain followed it, wondering how long I'd been asleep. He raised an eyebrow, and this time I noticed he was wearing a pair of dark black shades, hiding a part of his face that I depended on to read him, to see exactly what he was planning...not that it had worked out lately.

"Someone shows up in your abandoned apartement in the middle of Hector-knows-where, and that's your only reaction?"He mused, leaning forward as I instantly shrank back, frowning angrily at the floor in embarrasement, struggling to find the right thing to say. But what was I supposed to ask? How he got here? How he knew where to find me? To be honest, did I want to know?

"Ohhh, baby,"He mused in a sing-song voice, flipping his dreads back and pointing at me with that claw, "No wonder you been in more scraps than a mutt. You gotta be more careful."

"Are you the one to be telling me that?"I snapped, surprised at my own bravery and the almost not-worried tone I'd taken on, when inside I was a swarm of nerves and confusion. He kept an even face, and I couldn't read in his eyes if there was anything else going on in that head of his. He just leaned forward a bit more, grey baggy pants showing under his black trenchcoat, and said airily,

"Woah now, I'm here on a matter of buisiness. No need to get hot and bothered." I snapped a glare at him, but it didn't last long. At the moment, I was more suspicious than anything as to the ridiculously absurd reason for why he was here. So, hoping he'd get the hint and continue, I remained silent. After a moment or two, he finally sat back and reached the left-handed claw behind him, and then brought forth the black glove that I remembered just now that he still had in his possesion, making me stiffen considerably.

"See, I've got somethin' you want. And you got somethin' I want. I think it speaks for itself, don't it?"His words came out smooth and professional, almost like he'd practiced them but not as stiff and formal. It was hard to describe, and even harder to focus on when all I could see was my glove, the only security I had left, as the man pointed it towards him and looked at it with an apathetic curiosity.

'You got somethin' I want'...I couldn't imagine what it was, and a maze of things flew past my mind, some simple and others...I shook myself inwardly, knowing that, even with a mild pain in my legs and arms, I could get away from this man. Even with his surprising strength and smooth yet deadly movements that he displayed today(the undimmed light above a sign that I hadn't slept too long), I had a confidence that I'd avoid any attack he sent my way.

"...What do you want?"I demanded quietly, trying to sound confident and failing when I needed to most. He paused a second and, even with the shades on, I could see a moment of conflict cross his face, trying to hide it by looking at the glove. But I caught it, though it only lasted a second or two if that, his mouth thinning out, almost as if he didn't know himself. Almost as if this whole thing were as odd to him as it was to me.

Finally, he cracked his neck then looked back at me, pointing to me with the claw.

"You've caught me on a boring day, sweetheart, and piqued my interest. If you answer some of the questions I got, I'll give you back your pretty glove. What do you say?"

I waited a moment to see if he was serious, but he didn't laugh or change his facial expression. Just sat there, expecting me to answer...questions? Why in Hector would he have questions about me? I thought back, on the first time I saw him and just the...different air about him. There was something confusing about this man, something I couldn't place my finger on or, for that matter, wanted to. This man, to me, was exactly the oppisit of what I wanted to focus on.

If I let him get me distracted by curiosity, if I mulled over any questions I might have about him, like why he had interest in me in the first place, then everything I'd been through would be worthless. Besides, I was an albino-like nineteen-year-old who he ran into twice. Why would he have any questions about me? I didn't believe him for one second when he said that I'd caught him on a 'boring day'. After what happened, today was anything but boring, as well as yesterday.

"Time's tickin' baby, and I'm a very busy man."He mused, and I looked again at the glove. Questions...I didn't like questions. I hadn't been asked any, but you don't need to be asked questions to know that your past isn't worth re-telling, especially not to a man who shows up in your apartement after suspiciously showing up in places you were in... And yet, at the same time, he had my damn glove.

I clenched my teeth together, knowing I'd been backed into a corner with no pleasent way out. I saw the man cock an eyebrow, and silently I relented. If I could get this over with fast, I could make it out of this city in the next hour. I need out, and now, giving this man as little information as possible.

"...What questions?"I asked quietly, suspiciously, and his grin widened.

"That's a good girl, I thought you'd see it my way. Let's start with your name, hm?"He asked, and I was about to refuse when he turned the claw, the glove hanging off the end and reminding me that, out of all the questions he could have asked, my name was by far one of the better ones. So, relenting once again, I took in a deep breath and said in a slightly defiant tone,

"Iris." He paused, as if expecting more, but I was dedicated on giving him as little information as possible about myself. He wanted specific answers, he'd have to ask specific questions. After he realized that was all he was gonna get, he got that amused look back.

"Iris, huh? Ain't that a pretty name."He almost seemed like he was mocking me, but at the same time it was almost like...he was serious. I didn't want to think like that, already in a ridiculous situation and not wanting to make it worse.

"Well, Iris, tell me why you let those assholes beat the shit out a' you this morning?"I almost flinched with how quickly the situation turned on me, as if it had ever been in my favor to begin with. My mind raced, trying to think a way out of this one and give him skin-deep information, not coming up with any solid ways and knowing that, if I wanted to get my glove back, I had to come up with an answer fast.

I felt myself shrink inside, looking down and away in almost embarrasment, having never actually spoken these words out loud before and trying to think of a way to make them sound...not so pathetic and question-invoking. I felt like I was barring my very soul to this man that I couldn't detest more, telling him things no one knew all for my glove back.

"...I didn't have my glove."I muttered, knowing the question that was coming next and dreading it...

"...You kill people with those little hands of yours, huh? Guess we got somethin' in common."He insinuated, and while I was glad it wasn't a question I had to answer, I was no less thrilled to be compared to this man, and before I could stop myself I snapped,

"Only white-blood cells. No one else." He seemed genuinly surprised, giving me a curious and caught-off-guard look as I instantly dropped my gaze, hating that heat that seemed to radiate from his eyes even behind the shades, like he was looking straight into me. Suddenly I wished I'd left this morning, that I'd never even come to this body in the first place...

"A virus who don't wanna hurt no one, huh? How's that workin' out for you?"He asked sarcastically, and I scowled at the ground, muttering,

"Great, until you messed it up."

"Don't remember askin' for your help there, Iris."

"Trust me, I wish I hadn't!"I suddenly snapped, glaring at him as long, pure-white strands of hair fell in my face, his own face giving me a look that was finally not amusement or that unnerving curiosity. A mild bit of hostility formed on his frown, and I was almost relieved. Anger I could deal with, everything else about this man I couldn't.

And yet, almost as suddenly as the outburst had happened, he stopped it.

"So why would those germs be after a virus who don't do her job?" I looked up at the man curiously, eyes narrowed hostily as I asked,

"They were after me?" He seemed a bit surprised, and then I sensed a bit of his own curiosity, my own heart beginning to beat faster as I went to the worst possible outcome, the worst possible answer that would explain too much, far too much. A conclusion I'd been avoiding for not just this moment, not just these past two days, but for the past decade.

"A guess. Just assumed that no one could get into that much trouble without a meaning behind it...why?" I let out a sigh of relief, silently, but that fear that ran through my veins wasn't completely satiated, something inside of me knowing that what he said was completely true. Yes, some bodies were tougher than others, but this was the body of a child. I'd never been attacked this many times in just over 24 hours, let alone in the body of a teenage boy.

It could be coincidence. But that was another thing I ran from.

"No reason."I muttered, resting back against the wall.

"That sure seemed like a reason to me. One of the viruses 'round here got your number?"He asked, and I clammed up faster than ever, clenching my teeth together and refusing to answer. That was something I didn't want to think about, let alone tell another virus. 'Got my number'...hah, if only. If only that's all I was running from. If he only wanted to kill me, then this whole thing would have been a hell of a lot easier. If he just wanted something so trivial, so easy to give him, then I wouldn't be running, now would I?

"...So someone is after you. Wonder what a pretty girl like you did to piss off someone with such heavy friends."He insinuated the question, but I didn't answer at all. I couldn't, not when I was remembering that I hadn't done anything to want this man to come after me except exist. That was it. I didn't chose this, didn't want this. I bit my lip, glaring at the floor like it was that man himself, that man who ruined my life. My family's life. The one we wanted to lead, the one we wanted to try and suceed at despite the cards we were given.

I didn't chose to be strong. I didn't chose for a major crime boss to want to recruit my family. I didn't chose for him to have stronger henchemen than we thought. I didn't chose for my father to reject his request despite this, because of his pride, because of his set-in-stone morals. I didn't chose for my mother to throw herself in front of us, and then my brother after her. I didn't chose for my father to save me, because he knew I was the real one he wanted.

I didn't chose to have to run. This was all chosen for me. I hadn't done shit to deserve this, but it didn't matter what I did anymore. The only thing I did that mattered was running, running from body to body, running from the man who was still looking for me, from the man who killed my family and wanted to use me as his own personal weapon of mass destruction. Maybe towards. But so long as I was running, it didn't matter.

I wanted to stop sometimes, just to end things. And everytime this happened, I thought about the words that my father said to me, the promise he swore me to keep, holding my arms tight and looking down at me with stormy grey eyes, while his wife and oldest son died just outside that door. He was doing this because he wanted to save the last thing he had left. He did it because he didn't want the man to win, because he'd rather his daughter run forever than live a life of murder.

He let his wife, son, and eventually himself die to keep me going. The least I could do was keep my promise...

Something fell on me, and it took me a second to look up and see what it was, lying on my knees like a runaway cat come home. The glove. I looked up quickly, the man standing and fixing his shades, running a hand coolly through his dreads and frowning a serious, almost intimidating frown at the door to the small room. He was going to leave. Just like that...

He gave me the glove back, even after I hadn't answered his questions. He gave it back, even though he had no right to, even though that wasn't what viruses did. They weren't supposed to keep bargains and do favors...they also weren't supposed to save people. Confusion clouded my mind as I looked up at him, eyes narrowed in confusion as he slid a hand into a pocket of his jacket.

And, for just a fleeting moment...I wondered if I was wrong about this man. A virus that wasn't completely bad...was that really so ridiculous? But this man, with his air of defiance and danger, clearly having killed more than I'd care to think about, couldn't be like me. Not in any possible way...and yet how did I explain this?

This man was the most confusing individual I'd ever met in my entire existance. One moment he made me hate him, the next he was doing something that was the complete oppisite. I didn't know what to make of this man, and somehow, when I was supposed to answer his questions, I'd ended up with more than he'd asked. All swimming around in my mind, all jumbled and unanswered, and all keeping me still and silent.

He cracked his neck, moving fluidly towards the door and holding his claw up in almost a wave good-bye, then throwing over his shoulder,

"Keep outta alleys, Iris. Big Daddy Thrax ain't gonna be able to save your ass all the time." And, almost as suddenly as he'd appeared, he was gone, the door shut and stirring up dust that got caught in the light from the ceiling. Leaving me in complete silence, except for the screaming questions in my head and the glove on my knees that I slowly looked at, feeling it as if I expected something to be different about it.

And there was. It was warm, very warm, but not uncomftorbly so. Almost like a soothing warm, the kind I hadn't felt since I was a child and would lie in bed with the blankets pulled to my chin. A warmth you didn't get from apartements. A warmth you weren't supposed to get from viruses. And yet, as I pulled it on and the warm fabric soothed my now-comftorble hand, that's exactly what I got.

I wasn't supposed to think of this man as warm, or as someone who took pity on a girl and not only saved her, but did her a favor and kept a promise. I wasn't supposed to have taken my mind completely off leaving...and I damn sure wasn't supposed to be stalling. A sense of anger, dread, and self-hatred filled me to my core.

No, this was ridiculous. I didn't give a damn what he'd done for me, I was leaving. I was not going to stay, wasn't going to let some stranger keep me here when I had no reason to see him again, a man who's name I didn't even...no. I knew his name, he'd said it before, and again just now.

Thrax.

Somehow, the name fit him perfectly. Defiant. Ruthless. And absolutely confusing. There were things he was hiding from me when I'd been answering his questions, and I knew it. Things that I should and shouldn't want to know. I shook my head, telling myself that this whole experiance in this body had been one of the worst I'd ever been through, and that I should want to get out immediatly. I should.

So why didn't I?

Third Person p.o.v****

Six pairs of eyes watched the red virus walk out of the pitifully broken and hallowed apartement, but only two of them showed utter and complete joy at the sight. Those two eyes, only a thin black line darkening in a perfect circle within both, glinted in an odd showing of glee at something that the two massive germs by his side nothing more than suspicious and coincidental. But they didn't understand, not like this man did. They didn't know what this meant, didn't know that the man in the long, sleeveless, floor-length, black jacket had just been dealt a perfect hand.

"So, they're friends. How lovely."He whispered in almost a euphoric tone, a hand trailing down the side of his face before joining the other one below, arms bent and resting on bent knees as he knelt on the very edge of the taller apartement, teetering almost dangerously. But this man felt no fear. He liked to say that this was how he'd gotten so far.

Besides, who could feel fear when a brilliant, game-changing plan was forming in his head, the cause for his sudden glee now flying away, using his black trenchcoat as a type of wing, soon gone. But not for long, no. Small knew this, saw a certain look in the man's eye that he'd never seen before, a look that looked just fantastic on his always-sullen and angry cowl. A look so delicious, because it meant one beautiful thing.

Oh, leave it to his little gem to invoke something like that in a man such as Thrax. Something as rare as...curiosity. Yes, he looked so curious, and Pox didn't even care to know where Thrax was going at the moment. All he knew was that he'd be back. And Pox would be waiting.

"Boss, you want us to go get her now?"The larger of the two henchmen asked in a slurred yet sober speech. Pox, with a wide grin and wide eyes, shook his head and held up a hand, fingers curled slightly over, saying lightly with raised eyebrows,

"No. We wait for Mr. Thrax to come back."

"Ah, killin' two birds with one stone!"The smaller, yet still large, henchman said in realization and malice. Pox snapped his head over, not looking at the man but looking down slightly more to his right,

"No!"He shouted, making both germs jump at their boss's frequent and unpredictable mood swings, "We kill one...we bring the other home. To me." He explained, softer tone now as he gazed dreamily into the apartement of his goal, where he knew that grown-up little girl resided, the most powerful ITP virus to ever exist in a family strand.

'Iris dear...you've been running for too long. It's time to come back home.'

Thrax's p.o.v****

This kid was the biggest thorn in my side since Pox. Never had I ever met anyone so damn fascinating, so damn cryptic, that I legitimatly wracked my brains over every little question about them. And what I was doing now...this was a whole new level of obsessed. I was actually doing this, all for some kid I'd known for two days and yet could get out of my damn head. I felt like nothing would ever be clear, I couldn't think, until I got the answers I wanted.

I'd taken into consideration the absolute ridiculousness of the entire damn thing. But I'd long since stopped caring, knowing that I had no other option but this or suffer. If I wanted to get back on track, if I wanted to get to kickin' Pox's ass all over Hector, then this choice wasn't actually as bad as I wanted it to be. This way, I'd clear my head and get my hands on Pox. And who said that, once it was all said and done, I had to stop there? This was one way to get close enough to Jones to repay him for what he did to me.

So I sat there on Chief's desk while he went and got my well of information, the little hispanic chick with moxxy and fight in her. The whole time I could feel my skin crawling, just being near this many Immunity pencil pushers who probably jumped on the story of Jones's lucky catch. I waited for five minutes, five minutes of arguing and fighting with myself, until finally the door opened and in walked that little thing, a suspicious frown on her face.

"Don't look so happy to see me, baby."I drawled, leaning forward into her face as she leaned back a bit, but more defiant this time than before, only a little bit of commonsense fear behind those big, brown eyes.

"Back of, Thrax, or I'll shove your claw up your-"

"Maria!"The Chief snapped behind her, holding onto the handle of the door. The fiery woman stopped, but didn't look back at him, her angry eyes focused on mine. And as I looked at them, a different pair floated in my mind, a pair that showed so many unique emotions that I couldn't seem to get them out. Light grey, like a washed-out blue, hidden behind locks of pure-white hair...

I shook myself, cursing inwardly and realizing that I should have done this a long time ago. I had to get Iris out of my head, had to...

"Give him the information he wants, and then leave. Thrax, Jones will call you when we need you. Otherwise, I don't want to see you two anywhere near each other, understood?"The Chief snapped, and Maria grumbled,

"Believe me, it wont be hard." The Chief sighed, and then shut the door, leaving the room to the two of us. Maria turned and walked away from me, leaning against the wall and pulling out a nail file, working on her nails like she was trying to sand a building.

"So Thrax, what kinda information you lookin' for from Immunity, huh? Inner workings, route directions, weaknesses?"

"A person."I interrupted her, planning on making this sound less pathetic than it really was. She stopped for a moment, looking up at me skeptically before going back to her nails apathetically.

"One of your targets?"

"You could call it that."I mused, agreeing as she shrugged.

"I know every virus, germ, and cell that's been in the medical books, shoot big boy." I raised an eyebrow at how bold she was, but set that aside for later. Inside I felt a naive sense of...embarrasement? No, that wasn't how I rolled, Thrax didn't get embarrased... But I was hoping that this woman didn't read too much into it.

Hell, even I didn't know what to think of it.

"Iris. A virus, completely white from her hair to her damn feet, grey eyes."I mused, realizing that I hadn't actually gotten her full name after those cryptic, half-assed answers. The only reason I'd left was...it was that damn look on her face. She looked like I'd kicked her kitten, but something had told me she wasn't directing it at me. It was...a look I hadn't even seen on the most heartbroken of people. Not even on the faces of widows over their dead husbands. A tragic kinda look with more burden than I cared to look into.

And damn, did it hurt me. I didn't want it to, knew I'd gotten too damned close to that kid, but something about how tragic and dark her past must have been to put a look like that on her face made me crave information. Maria paused, looking up at me with narrowed, suspicious eyes, and for a second I got worried. Worried, but for a reason I didn't know...

"Iris Talia Peoni? What you wanna know about that ITP virus?"She asked, and I couldn't believe she actually knew who the kid was. I had to give this one props, she knew her shit.

"Just someone I gotta get rid of."I mused smoothly, and to my surprise Maria actually laughed. A laugh like she knew something I didn't, leaning back on the wall and shaking her head.

"You wont have to do much, that kid kinda gets rid of herself." Suddenly I was interested, trying to seem nonchalant even as I sat up a bit straighter, keeping silent as Maria continued, "Iris Talia Peoni, daughter of Issac Tom Peoni and Isabelle Trista Peoni. They were the only strand of ITP left after doctors figured out a cure. They only survived because they were never malichious in any body.

"Believe it or not, they were the first known family of viruses to swear off harm to cities and bodies, despite the fact that they could pretty much rule wherever they were. The ITP virus can destroy a white-blood cell within seconds of contact with their hands, being considered one of the most dangerous strands of virus in the world. I got wind a long time ago while I was commissioned in a different body that the entire family fell under the eye of our Small Pox."

Suddenly I tensed, stomach twisting sickeningly and a sense of dread creeping up my chest. Small Pox...that germ was massive, the kind of germ he would have used as muscle. And it was after Iris... That thought shouldn't have disturbed me as much as it did. But if I thought that was bad, what Maria said next made it seem like cake.

"See, he heard that the youngest daughter in the ITP family was one of the strongest ITP viruses ever incubated. This was back when he was just starting to get rolling, had a bunch of muscle heads in it for the money, and he gave the family and ultimatum. Join him and let him use their daughter for his goal, or the mental case would...well, you know." An icy feeling slid down my spine, the woman too wrapped up in her own story and nails to notice.

"Of course, they wouldn't let that happen. So Pox kept true to his words. He killed them all one-by-one, each of them standing in his way to stall. The mother went first, and then the oldest son, Ian Timothy Peoni. The father managed to get Iris out of the house before the guys got to him, but by that time Iris was long gone. Heard it put a real dent in Pox's plans, and he's been lookin' for her ever since. Never caught her, though, and even if she's in this body and that's how you know her, he'll still probably fail."

Her entire family was dead... That was why the kid was so damn defensive. She'd been on her own for years, had to watch her back everywhere she went, had to learn to fight for survival. A small little thing like that all alone in a world that broke all the small things, it was a wonder she was still alive. I thought about when she'd fought those germs, how strong and defensive and almost scared she'd looked.

The girl was put through hell, and despite myself I almost felt bad about how I'd treated her. It made sense, now, why she didn't give me any straight-forward answers. Who would spill their murdered family to a stranger with their glove? Or that a major crime boss was after them? ..It was fucked up. I didn't give a shit anymore who I was supposed to be, how I was supposed to act. At least when I killed someone, it was a full-grown man with enough of a death wish to get in my damn way.

But that girl was so small, so fragile-looking, that only a piece of scum like Pox would try to break her. Only someone that weak would go after a girl like that...though, after seeing her fight, seeing what she learned, Pox might still be in over his head. I looked back up at the woman, me having slid off the desk and now standing against it, and asked,

"And why's that? This is a small body, Pox is sure to run into the kid."

"She's a runner."Maria said calmly, and I cocked an eyebrow. She looked up for a second, and then back to her nails, elaborating. "The kid's been running for twelve years. Never stops, always on the move. She's never in the same body for more than two days, tops, usually 24 hours before moving onto the next one as if she weren't even there. She never stops.

"She's a runner, it's what she does. I wouldn't be surprised if she was already out of this body."The woman said it airily, nonchalantly. And by the time she'd finished, the room was empty. I was gone the second she finished, out the door and walking down the hall.

"Hey, Thrax-"

"Left my number on the desk. Call me when you can't handle your shit."I threw back darkly, not stopping for one second. I couldn't. Not when, after what Maria had told me, I had to go back. I didn't give one damn anymore about 'why', all I cared was seeing if she were lying or not. If Pox had gotten her while I was gone, everyone knowing that all the refugees hung out in that apartement complex. If she had healed from that beating, having only seen a small, discolored bruise on her smooth white skin.

Thinking of her face, of that feeling I got from looking into her pandora's-box eyes, of that albino girl who I hated more than anything...and yet was racing back to the aparetment to see if she was okay...

To see if she was still there. Some surpressed part of me holding onto some idiotic hope that she was, a more rational hope that I'd stop caring no matter what the answer was.