For a moment, the only noise was the echo of a gunshot. Tsuzuki sat frozen as Hisoka fell to the bed, slumping over. His blood began dripping out, staining the sheets.

There was a man standing at the door. His hands were shaking, gripping a gun tightly. Tsuzuki watched as he lowered one to a walkie-talkie clipped to his shoulder.

"You need to call the boss, now!" he said.

It was then that Tsuzuki acted, roaring with anger and releasing his energy in a powerful blast. The man screamed as he was flung down the hallway. Tsuzuki felt a sick sense of pride at the resounding crack that echoed through the castle.

Hisoka hadn't fainted, witnessing all of this. It scared him to see Tsuzuki looking so demon like. He could have sworn fangs began to appear. This energy wasn't the kind Tsuzuki normally. This was raw and feral. Something completely untamed, being released because of anger. Hisoka quickly put back up his shields. There was no telling how Tsuzuki was going to affect him in this state and he couldn't afford to be overwhelmed now.

He knew that it was only a matter of time before Muraki got the call and had the place surrounded. They would force Hisoka and Tsuzuki apart and torture them both. And Hisoka's last days on Earth would be filled with pain and the knowledge that he wasn't good enough to save Tsuzuki. He wasn't going to let the happen.

The energy Tsuzuki had gained left as quickly as it came. His face returned to normal and he fell to the bed. Hisoka was not going to let Tsuzuki laze about for another minute. It was time for action.

Hisoka grunted and pushed himself up. "Tsuzuki, we have to leave!" The pain in his side was unbearable. He was bleeding out. He knew that. But he wasn't going to loose to a madman.

Tsuzuki smiled at Hisoka. His eyes were full of pain and despair. "Sorry I made you come all this way for nothing."

"Idiot!" Hisoka shouted. No point in being quiet now. Muraki knew they were here. He yanked Tsuzuki up and wrapped an arm around his shoulder. "If you think I spent a month figuring out where you were. If you think I hiked all the way here in the snow just to leave you—" Hisoka dragged Tsuzuki out of the bed. Tsuzuki's legs were twisted and useless. Hisoka was going to drag him out of this place, even if it killed him. "If you really think I would go through all of that for nothing, then clearly you don't know me." Situating Tsuzuki on his back, Hisoka began to drag him out of the room. He heard shouts coming from down the hallway.

"Hisoka, don't strain yourself. Just get out. We can try again later," Tsuzuki said weakly.

"There won't be a later," Hisoka grunted. He turned back into the room and dragged Tsuzuki to the bed. He slammed the door shut and locked it. "Muraki knows what happened." Hisoka paused, not wanting to think about what else Tsuzuki would be forced to endure.

The door was being pounded on, the men trying to break it down. Hisoka dragged a chair to the window. "Beside, you're too weak as is an I won't let that man keep you any longer." With that resolve, Hisoka flung the chair at the window with all his might. The glass shattered. More shouting came from behind the door. Hisoka stumbled back to Tsuzuki and pulled him back up.

"Protecting you is the only thing that matters at the moment," Tsuzuki said, his voice was getting weaker with every word.

An axe punched through the door, leaving a small hole. Hisoka managed to get Tsuzuki to the window before leaping out of it. They were on the first floor, but it was still a few feet to the ground. Hisoka landed, twisting his ankle on impact. Tsuzuki shifted to the side, sending them both to the ground. Hisoka tried not to cry out when his bullet wound was smashed into the snow. The cold stung it badly. The storm had picked up. He couldn't see three feet in front of him.

"I'm still under his control. He'll find me and capture me. So I might as well make an attempt to get you out as well."

Hisoka managed to get to his feet and began stumbling through the snow. Every step was harder and harder. Hisoka couldn't feel his hands or his feet. The only good thing about it was that his side was no longer hurting. But he could tell he had lost a lot of blood. His vision was darkening around the edges and his head was pounding.

"Hisoka, please. You've done so well. Just save yourself," Tsuzuki begged.

Hisoka gritted his teeth and continued to walk. Tsuzuki's words just convincing him that he needed to save him even more. "What makes you think you can decide when I give up?" Hisoka shouted through the storm. He wasn't sure where he was headed. For all he knew, he could be heading up the mountain instead of towards civilization. "What makes you think you have the right to decide when I don't need you anymore?" His voice was getting horse from shouting, but he needed Tsuzuki to understand.

Hisoka put his foot down, only to collapse completely. He blinked the snow out of his eyes and stared into the distance. There had to be some shelter around here. He couldn't lose now.

In the distance, there was a darker spot. He wasn't sure if it was a house, a bridge, or a box. At this point, he didn't care. He was heading there now. Hisoka pulled himself up and stumbled towards the structure.

"You have me out of the mansion. Muraki won't find me out here. Get back to the office and get your injuries healed. I'll be fine until they can get someone out here," Tsuzuki said, this time in a much more commanding tone.

"I'm not leaving you just because you tell me too. I'm not giving up on you because you think it's for the best." Hisoka also didn't know if he could teleport right now. It was only a small consolation that the dark shadow turned out to be a structure. From the looks of it, it was a bridge.

"I get to decide because I'm the adult."

"No, you don't get to decide. I get to decide when I've had enough. And right now, I haven't had enough. You are coming back with me or I am dying out here with you. There is no other option," Hisoka said.

His heart nearly stopped when he heard dogs barking over the wind. They were going to find them! They were going to take Tsuzuki away from him.

"Oh little doll, my sweet Tsuzuki, come out, come out wherever you are," Muraki called. Hisoka didn't know if he would be able to see Muraki in the storm. The man was practically all white.

He stumbled forward and finally made it under the bridge. It shielded them from the wind just a little. It was better than nothing. Finding the only spot not covered in snow, Hisoka collapsed, pulling Tsuzuki to his chest. Upon not hearing any more protests, Hisoka looked down to see Tsuzuki unconscious. His lips were turning blue and his skin was ashen. The barking was getting closer.

"I will find you eventually. You can't hide forever," Muraki yelled. He was sounding less happy than before.

Hisoka wrapped himself around Tsuzuki and tried to focus his energy. He just had to go anywhere but here. Nothing happened. He couldn't even muster the strength to do this one last thing for Tsuzuki. Hisoka turner them so Tsuzuki was against the wall, better shielded from the storm. His ears strained to hear the dogs, but he heard nothing. At least Muraki seemed to have given up on finding them in this storm. At least Tsuzuki and him would freeze to death instead of tortured and used for experiments.

"I must be dying, because I can smell smoke," Hisoka muttered. He wasn't shivering anymore. He was actually feeling warm. Hisoka pressed himself closer to Tsuzuki.

"I never got to say how much you meant to me," Hisoka whimpered. He pulled off the sweater and did his best to wrap it around their bodies.

He couldn't help but think how cruel life was. He had endured years of abuse and pain. When he finally found someone who cared for him, he was ripped away. He felt his eyes getting heavier and his body shutting down. He didn't care anymore, as long as Tsuzuki was safe.

oOoOoOo

Tatsumi kicked a piece of burnt wood away from his foot, cursing their tardiness.

"He burned the entire place down. There's probably not any evidence," Watari said, picking up a scrap of paper. He tossed it back down, not seeing anything of use.

Terezuma was busy digging through the rubble. "There's a ton of dead bodies. I don't think any of them are the kid though." He cursed and kicked a plate, sending it flying into the abyss.

"They had to have escaped. Kurosaki's too stubborn to not succeed," Tatsumi said.

Watari shook his head. "Yeah, but they haven't showed up at the hospital yet. If they're out in this storm, they won't make it."

There was a ripping sound as Terezuma transformed into the monster. He bounded away, straight into the forest. Watari went to follow, only to be held back by Tatsumi.

"He'll find them. Call for some back up. We're going to need some help combing through all of this.

Terezuma, meanwhile, ran through the forest. He wasn't sure where he was going, the snow was making it hard to track the kid. But he did smell blood. And that blood was probably either Hisoka's or Tsuzuki's.

It annoyed Terezuma that he couldn't really remember the man. The more he thought, the more that came back to him. But even then they were just vague emotions and feelings. He didn't want to think about how Hisoka had managed to figure all of this out by himself.

Finally, the trail of blood smelled stronger. Terezuma smiled, well showed his teeth, considering the form he was in. He skidded to a stop in front of a small bridge. Peaking under, he saw two people curled together. He recognized Hisoka right away. The other man was vaguely familiar. He nudged Hisoka as gently as possible, trying to wake him up. Hisoka fell over. Terezuma tried the man next. He didn't budge. But he could still smell life on them, so they could still be healed. Terezuma gathered the kid and man's arms into his mouth and pulled them out from underneath the bridge. It took some maneuvering, but he was finally able to comfortably hold the two people in his mouth. He ducked his head down, trying to shield them from the snow, and trotted back to Tatsumi. Based on how the two looked now, there was going to be a lot of work that needed to be done. But they were both alive, and that's all that mattered.