AN: sorry agian. it seems someone really hates me up there. My dog died the dayafter I posted the last chapter so I've been in mourning for the past couple of weeks. thankfully I'm back into theswing of things. those that reviewed last chaptergot their treat ans something a little extra special added in for their patience. Q&As as always. And if you review you get something! I all ready have something in mind and it should be good!

All the precious time

Like the wind, the years go by.

Precious butterfly.

Spread your wings and fly.

She'll change her name today.

She'll make a promise and I'll give her away.

Standing in the bride-room just staring at her.

She asked me what I'm thinking and I said "I'm not

sure-I just feel like I'm losing my baby girl."

She leaned overgave me butterfly kisses with her mama there,

Sticking little white flowers all up in her hair

"Walk my down the aisle, Daddy-it's just about time."

"Does my wedding gown look pretty, Daddy? Daddy, don't cry!"

Butterfly Kisses - Bob Carslie

-----LAST TIME!-----

Now as she stopped just five feet from him, instead of her father, stood a black monster of no particular form. It was like it was made from the shadows you find under your bed at night, and it's eyes were glowing a hot white and dangerous. Its breath was raspy.

"Kanna, what's wrong?" it's voice sounded like a woman who was trying to scream in her nightmares but failing and making a high airy-squeak.

"Kanna, what is it?" Amon asked. He looked at Robin, and she exchanged a worried look through him. Robin had never seen her little girl look so frightened before... or had she? Didn't Kanna hold that same look driving away from that farm a few days prior?

"Kanna?" Robin asked.

Kanna looked from her mother to the monster standing next to her. Didn't she see it? Wasn't she afraid? Kanna began to shiver from where she stood and her breath quickened as she started to panic. Where was her daddy?

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Chapter 9

Underneath This Smile

By Sparky16

He was on the couch reading the file Karasuma had given him earlier and was reading about Lu, the hunter they suspected to be after them. The one this so called 'second party' had hired to do the dirty work. So far he learned at he was a high ranking hunter with one hell of a body count to his record. It was well into the tens of thousands, he wasn't going to go beyond that and look at the exact number. So he was good and he was ranked in the higher ups. While Amon had been a top hunter himself, he had gained it through his skills and technique. He was fast on his feet and could command a situation. Not Lu it seemed. He had only been associated with Solomon half as long as Amon and his only impressive stat was the number of hunts he had done. That had probably been the major benefactor in Lu's high rank.

Amon smirked at a slight thought. He wondered just how many of those dead people were actually witches. To Amon, Lu was sloppy. The attack at the apartment proved just that. Lu literally had gone in there with guns flailing. A careless mistake he never would've done.

No matter. His eyes drifted to the craft the hunter had. Earth craft. His specialty was illusions.

He nodded to this. Now he had a better idea of what he was up against.

Suddenly...

Amon jumped from the couch at the lash of fear he felt. It was like a throbbing pain that coursed through him and wouldn't go away. Kanna was afraid of something and he needed to know what! He had felt her project these feelings twice now - once at the old farm hand and once at Robin. Perhaps she was afraid of Robin again? Amon didn't know why but he was going to get to the bottom of this. He had been confused earlier by Kanna's sent feeling, wondering what she was so curious yet proud about.

Throwing on his coat and boots and grabbing his gun he rushed out the door down towards the beach. Amon froze when he heard a scream echo over the dusk colored scenery. Kanna. He felt the fear she was emitting intensify ten fold. Something was going on and he took off, hoping to find his family in time to see what it was.

Robin looked on in worry. Why was Kanna acting like this and to her father no less? Amon, in an attempt to comfort his daughter, had picked her up. Now she was screaming, kicking, crying and even clawing to get away from him and over to her.

"Kanna, it's only Daddy" she tried to reassure as Amon held onto her tightly trying to shush the child and bounced her slightly. Robin made the mistake by drawing near to pat her head and Kanna took the incentive and latched onto her coat to pull at her, trying to get herself out of Amon's grip. Robin loosened herself and stepped back. Amon adjusted the child so she was on her back like an infant but her legs under his arm so she couldn't kick anymore. Kanna just looked up at him with terrified eyes.

"Kanna shh, it's just me."

At that moment Kanna did something completely unexpected. Amon felt himself being pushed back. Kanna was using her telekinesis to try and get away. "Kanna, stop this!" Robin scolded in her worry. Kanna did stop and she began shouting and crying again. It wasn't much longer after that than Robin's cell rang. She stepped away and answered. "Hello?" Robin's eyes widened just then and she make a quick glance at Amon. Amon glanced over at her as she took interest in the call. "What?" she asked. She looked at him again and noticed that Amon seemed to tense a little. Covering her other ear to drown out the crying from her daughter, she answered "Yeah he's here." She saw him relax. "Sure, just one second." She answered.

She pressed her hand to the mouthpiece and looked at him. "Your brother's on the phone. He wants to speak to you, say's it's important." Robin said. "Give me Kanna. I'll calm her down and you can talk to your brother." Reluctantly Amon switched Kanna for the phone.

Robin took the child and started walking away towards the path, shushing and bouncing Kanna. Amon looked at the phone then pressed it to his ear. "Hello?" he answered.

"In the words of my brother 'Nice knowing yah.'" came a baritone voice from the other end. Amon's eyes widened. It was he or rather the REAL Amon! Lu jumped at the sound of a gunshot as it rang out. He felt a sharp pain in his right shoulder and dropped the phone to cover his injury. He twirled around to see the real Amon standing some ways back on an embankment holding a cell in one hand and having his caliber pointed at him with the other.

This was not supposed to happen! He looked towards Robin who stood a good distance from him now glaring daggers at him, Kanna shielded protectively behind her. She was the first to speak. "How dare you." Her voice was low and threatening.

Lu chuckled, still in the guise of Amon. "If the price on the head is right," he remarked to her comment. Robin seemed enraged by this and with a swift uplift movement of her arm a surge of flames flew forth from her and rolled over the sand with the force of the barreling waves of the sea and as such, crashed against a rock wall Lu had risen all around himself to protect himself from the fire of both sides.

Lu wanted to breath a sigh of relief, he wanted to laugh and taunt his prey but he couldn't. In fact they were the ones in the perfect position to laugh at him. That bullet wound Amon had inflicted was hurting like hell and if Lu had to ultimately take a guess, that ammo he was using was not ordinary ammo either considering it had inflicted more damage than he had thought, and his rock wall barrier was cracking. It was cracking and melting against the heat of Robin's flame. He could see the cracks all ready glowing as the rock melted. It wouldn't be long before it imploded and he would be seriously injured. Lu only had several seconds to plan an escape before he felt sand raining down on him. They were either going to bury him alive in his own barrier or he was going to be forced out and burnt or shot to death.

Amon, the real Amon, had taken control over the situation almost instantly. When he had arrived he saw himself with Robin and Kanna freaking out and it didn't take him long to put two and two together. The farm hand, Robin, himself... it had been that hunter and Kanna had seen right through his illusions somehow. Quickly he had called Robin, not wanting to alert Lu of the situation that he had been caught, and fortunately Robin had been able to keep it together and convince him that it had been Nagira on the other end.

Now Lu was cornered, his barrier of rock acting likes a glass holding an injured witch in it and one more blow from either he or Robin would end this duel. That he was sure of, he just needed to flush him out of his little barrier and he all ready thought of a way. With a single thought directed at Kanna as instructions, the child used her psychic powers to lift sand from the ground and keep a steady stream pouring over the top of the barrier.

Simple? Perhaps. Effective? Amon sure hoped so. Unless Lu wanted to be buried alive he would have to drop his barrier and face them. There was just one thing that Amon hadn't calculated though and that was the sharp dagger like rocks that literally rocketed up from the ground right towards himself and Robin.

Lu had only seconds to think. He needed to escape but he had to stop the attack on him to get away. He would skewer them! Reaching for the ground, he focused his craft to dig deep within the earth and cause the bedrock beneath the sand to shoot up towards the attackers and cause the beach to look like an over sized pin cushion. The attacks stopped. Now was his chance.

Amon had jumped out of the way; Robin had grabbed Kanna and fled off the side, all three just narrowly avoiding their fate as human shish kabobs. Deciding she had had enough, Robin let her fury out into her attack and engulfed Lucifer's barrier in a blast of bright hot flames. Amon ran and slid down the embankment towards Robin and Kanna as they made their way towards him. The moment they reached one another, they embraced quickly before turning their attention to the flaming wall of rock. They could hear the snapping and popping of the sand within the barrier, at least they hopped it was the sand. Amon nodded to Robin, who, with a swipe of her wrist, made the flames vanish. The sudden cooling of the rock barrier caused it blow apart revealing the hot interior. Where once sand had been, was now pure glass. Robin's flames had been so extremely hot the sand within the barrier had melted and turned to glass. Amon stepped a little closer to the giant cylinder of glass and frowned.

"He's escaped." Amon said gruffly.

"What? How?" Robin asked and she stepped a little closer. The glass was still giving off great amounts of heat and she used part of her jacket to cover Kanna to protect her from it. Amon pointed down at the ground and Robin saw it and nearly cursed herself. There was a hole in the ground. Lu had used his craft to escape.

"I don't know what's worse. The fact that he escaped or the fact that we still don't know his true face." Robin grumbled and stepped away from the mound of glass. She set Kanna down and began to think to herself. "I should've known." she sighed to herself. She looked down at the ground. "I even let that monster hold my baby."

"You weren't to have known Robin." Amon spoke as he came to stand beside her. "I made the same mistake myself."

"But you got Kanna and I out of there." Robin said, referring to the farm.

He leaned down a little closer to her ear. "There was another time." He admitted.

Robin paused her sulking and blinked for a moment. Another time? It hit her then and she began to chuckle sadly. "Of course," She said. "I should've known that you wouldn't have listened to me. I should've known." She looked up to her shoulder to see him looking at her. "Who, when and how?"

"Not long after you left. Nagira took me to meet with Karasuma. Kanna was in the car watching us and Lu pulled up in a car like ours." Amon admitted. Robin nodded to this.

"He disguised himself as you."

Robin's eyes widened in shock. "He what?" she said, turned around to fully face him.

"And Kanna had the exact same reaction."

"She can somehow see through his illusions?"

"Maybe, and it scares her horribly."

"Amon, it's not safe to stay here anymore." Robin said.

"I know. Grab Kanna, lets go."

"Where is she?" Robin asked and looked around.

She was easy to find. She was by the embankment, hopping around in the tall dry grass like a frog jumping after a frog. "Ribbit." She said and when the frog jumped, she jumped. Her parents frowned. It was heart breaking really. While Kanna thought the whole world was a game she had no idea of the dangers she was in. Robin walked over to retrieve the child and the three started their way up the embankment and straight out of the vacationing area.

"Aren't we going to get our stuff from the cabin?" Robin questioned.

"We'll send someone." Amon answered as they made their way to the bus stop. "As it stands it's to dangerous to return or even take our own car if Lucifer knows what we take."

"But if we go to Nagira's won't that put him in danger?"

"We aren't."

"We're not?" Amon shook his head to answer her.

They were soon on the bus heading back into the city and Robin seriously wondered what he had planned this time as she watched him pull out his cell and begin making phone calls.

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"Hello?" Nagira said as he picked up the phone in his office. As usual his feet where on his desk, he was leaning back in his chair, and a smoldering cigarette was hanging from his mouth. "Well, well, if it ain't the bearer of bad news." He said as he recognized Amon's voice on the other end. "So what little rain cloud is pouring over your head today?"

"Lucifer found us." Amon said. "Nagira that wasn't Robin that found us earlier, it was Lu. He can use illusions. Kanna saw right though it, and he tried again today disguised as me to get to Robin and Kanna."

Nagira blinked a little out of shock. "Jesus, is everyone okay?" he asked.

"Yes, we're on a bus heading back into town."

"Damn, when it rains it just dumps buckets for you, doesn't it?" Nagira said.

"Nagira, you need to get away from your place for a while. Lu knows we're associated now. That's why I called. You have to get out."

"Yeah I hear yah. Where will you and Robin be staying at?"

There was a long pause before he answered: "With friends."

Nagira nodded. "I'll be out of here in less than an hour then. Call me when you three are safe." and he hung up.

--------------------------------

The sun had finally settled down to sleep as the bus made its way into the city of Tokyo. The night sky was cloudless and the stars seemed to be brighter than normal tonight. Amon felt a weight against his arm and he glanced over to see Robin cuddling with a snoozing Kanna in her sleep. She had just merely leaned on him in her lack of consciousness. They would be arriving at their stop soon. Now would be the perfect time to make his last call. He just hoped that he was going to make the correct one.

--------------------------------

The phone rang. It rang and it rang and no one was picking it up. Yurika, Haruto, Miho and Michael sat at the table near the couch eating their evening snacks.

"Is anyone going to answer that?" Yurika asked.

"Why we're all here." Sakaki answered.

"Yeah but it could be the boss." Yurika answered.

Michael sighed and got up. He reached out for the phone on his desk and tapped the speaker button.

"Hello?" he asked.

"Michael. We need your help." came the very familiar voice over the phone. "Where are the others?"

At the sound of Amon's voice, everyone was up and out of their seats and over at the phone in seconds. "We're right here, Amon, what happened?" Yurika answered.

Amon hazarded a glance down at Robin to make sure she was still sleeping before answering, "We're coming back to work."

The others were stunned into a shocked silence. Had they just heard him correctly?

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A black car was parked out front of the bus terminal. Miho waited quietly inside, waiting for the bus that would bring her coworkers back. She still couldn't believe what Amon had said twenty minutes prior to her arriving here.

'We're coming back to work.'

Why? Why would Amon say that? He was a father determined to stay as far away from his past and Solomon as possible. She knew that he didn't want to drag Kanna nor Robin through that crappy reality that was currently her life so what was the deal? Karasuma knew better than to underestimate Amon or Robin. The whole gang did. They had proved time and time again that they could handle any situation. So now they begged the question, just what were they planning? Miho didn't have time to ponder this as she saw the last bus of the day roll into the depot. The very bus her friends were on.

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Lucifer sat back against his couch in exhaustion. He had been careless getting to Robin that close and disguising himself as her husband. And worse, once again, little Kanna had seen right through his disguise.

But how?

No one on the face of the planet could see through a witch's illusion. No one!

So why did she? Why did this little girl know that he was not who he had posed as? Something wasn't sitting right with him. That child's powers were merely telekinetic. She could only manipulate objects with her mind. None of this made any sense.

Lu shifted his shoulder the wrong way and took in a sharp breath. It still hurt where he had been shot.

He thought to himself a little more. He would need to rid himself of the child if his illusions were to work effectively and not be given away, and he was going to have to be careful were he tread and watch for anyone watching him.

Lu already knew, by common sense that, if he killed just Robin then her lover would be after him like a hound to a fox, and the same went for if he just killed the daughter. Those two would not break easily. He would have to take all three out or at least the parents. He had plans for the child first before he disposed of her. But if he kept her alive then he would not be able to use his illusions to disguise himself.

This was going to prove rather tedious not to mention troublesome.

-----------------------------------

It was quarter to 9 before they arrived at Raven Flats. The sky was dark, the air was cold and Robin and Kanna were still efficiently half asleep upon arrival. Greeted by their old friends, they had been lead to their sanctuary on the third floor. A single room for the three to stay in until Lu was out of the picture and they could go home. No one still had any clue what Amon was planning or had planned when he said he and Robin were returning to work. All they knew is that he asked for a place to stay at the flats and that he would be in the office in the morning. Nothing more was said.

The third floor bedroom had dark plaster walls almost chocolate brown. There was a dark cherry four-poster bed just across from the front door in the middle of the room and an oak vanity off to the left, and cherry Armoire off to the right, just next to the bathroom door. The floor was wood with a large floor rug extending out from under the bed and the room's only window was near the bathroom door with an old dusty rose-colored velvet curtain hanging from it. The room was filthy though. It was evident the moment Robin reached in and flicked on the ceiling fan light and the dust flew from the rotating blades. Dust piled at least an inch off most of the surfaces of the room and Robin swore she could hear giant dust bunnies giggling at her from under the bed. Cobwebs clung almost everywhere but most notoriously up in the corners.

"Um, we didn't have time to clean." Doujima said sheepishly and she grinned.

"It took you half an hour to find this room?" Miho asked.

Sakaki shrugged. "The place is huge," he answered. "All we use is the office."

Robin shift Kanna to rest on her hip as she examined the room. Amon was wary to step inside, wondering what sort of health hazard this room was. He had been in abandoned buildings, half torn down houses, murder scenes and the like but none compared to this room and it's herd of giant dust bunnies.

"We could try and find another room." Doujima offered.

Robin shook her head and handed Kanna off to Amon. "Give me twenty minutes," she said. "Take her somewhere so this stuff wont make her sick and when you come back it should be clean."

"I can-" Amon was about to offer his help but Karasuma had stepped in.

"I'll help Robin." She said. Amon just nodded and looked down at his now very-much-awake toddler wondering what he was going to do for twenty minutes.

"Hey Amon." Sakaki caught the older man's attention. "Me, Yurika and Michael are going down to Harry's to catch a quick late night snack. Wanna come and bring Kanna along?"

It would pass the time, it would keep Kanna out of trouble and he could catch up in his own meager little way. Sure why not. "Fine." Amon said.

"Have fun you guys." Miho called.

"Say hello to Master for me, Amon." Robin said.

He acknowledged her and left with the others.

---------------------------------

"Well, well, look it what the cat dragged in." Nagira grinned from his table as Haruto, Yurika, Michael, and Amon walked in. Kanna was a foot behind them playing froggy again.

Absently Amon's gaze drifted to the bar in search of a familiar figure. The familiar figure was absent, leading him to believe that he was in the back.

"Oh god, who let that thing in here." Doujima teased, making a disgusted face as she sat down next to the smoking man.

"This 'thing' as you so affectionately called me, is waiting for a good ol' fashion western style steak and potato dinner. What about the rest of you?"

"Late night snack." was the simple reply Sakaki provided. They all sat down, Michael next to Doujima while Amon and Sakaki sat opposite of them and Kanna crawled under the table.

"OWE!" Nagira said as he leaned back and scrunched his face in discomfort. "Amon, get your ankle bitter off me."

"What's she doing?" He inquired.

"Biting my ankles!" he exclaimed.

"Woof, woof!" Came a little voice from under the table.

"Better you than me." was Amon's reply. Nagira gave him a disapproving look before wincing again. "Grrrr" Kanna growled. Amon shook his head and let his leg wonder in Kanna's direction and he gave her a few taps in the side with his foot.

In reaction, Kanna released her uncle, turned around and latched onto Amon's leg. Legs, arms, teeth and all.

"No, Kanna! Not me!" Amon said and reached under the table to tug the two year old out from under it and up onto his lap.

"Woof! Woof!" Kanna yapped making the adults smile and Amon sorry that he drew her attention to him and his leg.

"Well, it's been a while." Came a familiar voice from Amon's side. He looked up to see Yuji Kobari, affectionately known as Master, the owner of Harry's restaurant. His arms were crossed lightly over his chest, as they always were, and he seemed to lean back on his heels to study the young man-now-turned-father.

Amon nodded "Ai."

Yuji smiled. "She has her Father's eyes."

Something in Amon seemed to burst with pride that moment. He didn't know why, maybe if was that fatherly part of him.

"Arf, arf!" Kanna panted, still acting like a puppy.

Nagira smiled "And her father's intellect."

Amon scowled.

"Woof!" Kanna replied.

Everyone had a small chuckle at Amon expense. The man leaned down to whisper into his daughter's ear 'enough.' Kanna looked at him... and licked him! When Amon sent her a disapproving look, Kanna must've taken it as some key or clue to stop and instantly started squirming and climbing up her father to look into the next booth. "Hi!" Kanna said as she got to the point of Amon's shoulder before she was pulled back down and held firmly in his lap. The couple in the next both merely chuckled. Kanna gave a grunt as she tried to pry herself free of her father's grip but Amon just sat there, arms cross over Kanna's lap, holding her down.

"I think I may know how to remedy that." Yuji said with a smile then took everyone's order.

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"How much do you suppose actually got into her mouth?" Doujima asked as everyone surveyed the toddler wearing her hot fudge sundae.

"If I had to guess, only 3 spoons, she's wearing the rest." Sakaki said over his coffee and watched Kanna from the side of his vision as she attempted to feed herself another spoonful of ice cream. She partly succeeded. Had she closed her mouth to chew the rapidly melting sticky treat, it might have fully stayed in her mouth.

The others had mostly finished their food and just sat observing the independent little clown that refused to let her father, or anyone else for that matter, help her.

"Watch her, I'll be back." Amon said and headed off towards the Men's washroom, presumably to 'go' and to get something to clean his daughter off.

Nagira smirked. "Now that the old stiff is gone, it's time to have a little fun."

"Yeah, I like the sounds of that." Sakaki said with doubt. He was less than interested.

"From your reputation, Nagira, why do I get this feeling it's not good?" Michael asked.

"Cause it normally isn't" Doujima said with a disapproving look at the smoking man.

"Oh it's completely harmless." Nagira said. "Kanna's vocabulary just needs a little improving and what better time than to start now?"

"If it were harmless, how come you waited for Amon to leave?" Michael asked.

"Because if Amon had his way, the child would never talk." Nagira chuckled.

"You mean she'd never talk back." Sakaki corrected.

"Exactly" Nagira said. "Now lets see. Kanna?" Nagira asked to get the child's attention. She gave one of those cherubic grins that would've been cute had she not been covered in fudge. Knowing he had Kanna's full attention, he said "Santa bring drum set."

Kanna blinked. "Saba bing dumset." she parroted. Michael, Doujima and Sakaki grinned. After a few tries, Kanna was merrily chirping a fairly understandable version of 'Santa bring drum set.'

Buoyed by his first success, Nagira continued. "Mommy's packing extra pounds!"

The three younger adults howled in laughter.

"Nagira, you're awful!" Doujima cried over her tears of laughter.

"Mommy esta powds" Kanna said, apparently getting into the game. When the four had mastered the commentary on 'mommy's' weight problem, they moved on into other things.

Having relieved himself and grabbing a sufficient amount of wet paper towels, Amon proceeded back to table to clean up the mess he was sure his daughter had made. He had arrived to back to a table of breathless, teary eyed, chuckling adults and Kanna eating her nearly melted sundae.

"I'm not going to ask." He commented and set about cleaning up Kanna. The three younger just nodded. "Nagira?"

The older brother was smirking like the Cheshire cat. "Yo."

"We're going to have to make a late night pit stop at the cabins to pick our stuff up."

"And I became your personal taxi when?"

"The day I was born."

"Eh Amon, we'll tag along as hidden protection." Sakaki said.

Amon nodded. He had told them about Lucifer and what he had done down at the beach over the phone. "We'll drop Kanna off with her mother first." They all agreed.

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As they stepped back into the flats, Amon slowed his pace down to speak with Michael directly. "Michael."

"Yeah?"

"I need you to look at Lucifer's profile and find out how many of those he killed were actually witches."

"Uh, sure. No problem." Michael said. Amon nodded his thanks and went up to the third floor.

When he opened the door, he wasn't surprised to see Robin sitting on the bed in a perfectly tidy room. She was reading a book he supposed she got from Miho. She looked up at him then looked down at Kanna as she pranced into the room covered in fudge.

"I clean the room only for you to come home with a messy child." She sighed.

"Nagira and Myself are going to get our things from the cabin. Sakaki and Doujima will be with us."

"Be careful. I mean it." Robin said in perfect seriousness. "Lu could be there and we technically still don't know what he looks like."

"I know I've all ready thought about that. I'll be back soon." he said and handed the sticky child off to Robin to clean.

"I mean it Amon. Be careful."

"Right." He said and closed the door. Amon hadn't even taken three steps from the door when he heard Kanna shout, "Mommy's not a natural blonde!"

"AMON!" Robin shouted.

"NAGIRA!" Amon shouted in return.

Down below on the first floor, the echo's of Sakaki, Doujima and Nagira's laughter could be heard. Amon, being a wise man, fled the floor as fast as he could before hell's fire rained down on him.

Robin couldn't reach the door fast enough.

TBC...

Q&A

Q: Mommy's not a natural blond!

A: I couldnt help it! I just saw Nagira in that role! ALso I do not own that joke. Someone else did it ( read it in a journailist bib long ago) and I just had to duplicate it. So kudos to that Canuk! ( he was canadian!) andd yes, you all know I haveused that joke before in another story. Me bad :)

Q: Air is lighter than water? Kanna's weight issue.

A: Some of you may recall I said Kanna could only lift things lighter than a teddy bear. Well a grian of sand it lighter than a teddy bear!

Q: How many chapters do you see this going into?

A: I really don't know to be honest. I look at my plans and think 'I don't have much' but I do. so maybe 15-20? that's a rough estimate.

Review please. You know you get a treat if you do!