Author's notes: More of these things? Anyway, I'm getting the story heading the way I want it to.

Yes, I will get the next chapter up quick.

Ch. 9 - The Past Comes Back

"Hey, not too bad!" Saburo gave Reia a thumbs up as she walked out of the fitting room wearing cutoff jeans and a black tee. She turned around to let him see how it looked from the back. "I like it!" he said. Reia walked back into the room and came out wearing her own clothes. "Last ones?" Saburo asked. She nodded to him. "Well, five outfits should be a good start."

As they walked out of the store, Saburo heard the familiar voice of his friend calling him. He saw Daisuke fighting his way through the crowds, with Yukimi perched on his shoulder, pointing at them.

"Saburo! Wait up!" Daisuke said, trying to catch his breath.

"Perfect timing, we just finished buying clothes."

"Great! Is there anywhere else you want to go? Have you checked out the persocom store yet?"

"Actually, yes." Saburo replied. "I had the guy there take a look at Reia too."

"Did they find anything?"

"Her circuitry is physically damaged. One of the boards is cracked. Problem is that I cannot replace it without replacing the whole mainboard."

"Did they have the replacement parts?" Daisuke asked.

"No. The guy said that she was a very rare model and that even if I were able to track down the part I needed, it would cost more than a new persocom."

Daisuke nodded. "I expected that much. Anyway, let's keep walking around." Saburo put his arm around Reia. "Ready?" he asked. She smiled and started walking forward with him. "So, where are we going tomorrow?" asked Daisuke. "There's a guy on a message board that wants to meet up with me, said he can help me out." he replied.

"A persocom message board?" Saburo nodded.

"I know a lot of the guys on there, did you get his screen name by chance?"

"Yeah, M. Nothing else, just M."

"HE wants to meet you?" Daisuke asked surprisingly.

"Yeah, why?"

"Well, he's about the..." Daisuke was interrupted by a voice behind them.

"So, you found my persocom." the voice said.

Saburo and Daisuke both turned around to see who it was behind them. He was about Saburo's height, blonde hair and green eyes. He had a sort of mischievous half smile on his face. When Reia turned around a few seconds later, she jumped back and hid behind Saburo, her eyes barely peeking above his shoulder. She grabbed onto his arms and held on tightly.

"I thank you for taking care of her, but now I want her back. Reia, get over here!" Saburo put down his bags and placed his left hand on her waist. He turned his head to the side. "Stay right there." he said.

"Who the hell are you?" Daisuke asked.

He turned to look at Daisuke. "I don't believe I was talking to you."

"Fine, you're talking to me. Now who the hell are you?" Saburo said with a hint of anger in his voice. "All you need to know is that I'm her owner." he replied. "Get over here NOW!" his voice grew louder. Reia cowered behind Saburo, grabbing onto him even tighter. Saburo moved his hand to her back, pulling her closer to him. By now, they had drawn a lot of attention.

"Listen, you need to chill." Saburo said. "I don't know what your problem is but there's no way you're getting her, so you can just go away." The guy smiled. "Alright." he said and took a swing at Saburo. He jumped back quickly to dodge, almost knocking Reia down. "Go with Daisuke!" he told Reia. Saburo stepped forward and swung hard, sending the guy reeling back. He charged Saburo, slamming him into a wall and landing a punch directly to his face. A well placed kick to the stomach by Saburo had the man doubled over.

It didn't take security long to arrive. They separated everyone and began asking questions. Once they realized what they were fighting about, one of the guards approached Reia. "Who is your owner?" the guard asked. Reia looked around for a second, then walked over and stood beside Saburo.

"She's mine damnit!" the young man yelled as he ran towards her. One of the guards grabbed him and pinned him to a wall. Another guard looked at her. "Okay, we're gonna get the answer now." He pulled out a small device and reached for Reia's ear. She stepped back and looked over at Saburo. He nodded to her and said "It's okay." The guard opened one of her ears and plugged the device in. A few seconds later, the guard asked "Alright, which one of you is Saburo?" Saburo pulled out his wallet and handed the guard his ID. He unplugged his device from Reia and handed Saburo his ID back. "I'm sorry of the inconvenience. You are free to go." Saburo nodded. "What about my friend?"

The guard pointed to Daisuke. "Him?"

"Yes."

He waved his hand to the other guard who let Daisuke go. He walked over to Saburo. "I think now is a good time to get home." he said. "I couldn't agree more." replied Saburo. "Reia, let's go." He picked up his bags and placed his other arm around her. One of the mall's representatives approached them as they were leaving. "I'm sorry for the troubles, that man will not be allowed to return here. If there's anything I can do, just..."

Saburo interrupted. "You don't have to apologize for someone else's actions."

"Thank you, thank you very much." the man said.

Daisuke opened his car's trunk and Saburo put his bags inside. Daisuke noticed the black bag from the lingerie store as he was closing he trunk. "Something I ought to know?" he asked. Reia turned away and walked towards the car door, leaving Saburo to explain. His anger faded as he almost fell out laughing at his friend's expression. "I forgot to tell you, Reia's going to dance for us!" Reia turned around immediately, wide eyed with a confused expression. Saburo started laughing hysterically.

"Ahhhhh... I needed that." Saburo said, pulling himself back together. "Let's get outta here."

As they drove out of the parking lot, Daisuke's confusion could no longer be contained. "Alright, who was that guy?"

Saburo sighed. "Apparently it was Reia's previous owner."

"Do you know him?"

"No, and I don't want to either."

The remainder of the ride was very quiet. As they approached Saburo's apartment, Daisuke broke the silence. "When did you want me to drop by tomorrow?" he asked. "I'll give you a call." Saburo replied. Daisuke stopped in front of the main door and pulled the trunk lever. Saburo and Reia stepped out and gathered their things. Before heading up, Saburo stuck his head in the passenger window.

"Thanks."

"Anytime, you know that."

With that, Daisuke drove off towards home. Saburo and Reia made their way up to his apartment. He opened the door and let Reia in. Saburo closed the door behind him and sat the bags down on the couch. When he turned around, Reia grabbed him and held on tight. He put his arms around her, pulling her in.

"Tell me what happened. Tell me who he is." Saburo said. He sat her down in front of his computer, knowing that she would be typing a lot.

"His name is Ushio..."