Found time to update another chapter! Just this one though until further notice, enjoy!

Medical Room

"Lan maybe you should go sleep…you've had a long day…Chaud will still be here in the morning." Megaman told his netop.

Lan had been sitting by Chaud's side for hours now. He never said a word and was oblivious to everyone who tried to talk to him. Lan didn't even hear Megaman, he just kept looking down at Chaud. He jumped in his chair as he felt someone grab his shoulder. He looked up to see Raika standing over him. He had never seen Raika look so exhausted; there were dark shadows under his eyes and he was slumped over, a first for the proud soldier.

"You look horrible…" Lan said quietly looking up at his friend, relieved though to see that he was ok.

"Losing control always leaves me weakened." Was all that Raika said to him. He had woken up in a clearing a few hours ago and had to find his way back to SciLab. "Come on Lan lets go get something to eat."

Reluctantly Lan stood up and followed Raika out of the medical room and the two boys walked toward the cafeteria. Lan stopped and looked down an adjacent hall way, he could hear shouting down a ways. He recognized the voice that was shouting, it was Famous; Lan's curiosity was getting the best of him.

"You keep going…I'll meet up with you in a little bit." Lan said to Raika as he started to head down the other hall to Famous' office. Raika watched him for a few seconds before heading back to the medical room, he wasn't hungry at all, the dragon had gone hunting earlier.

Famous' Office

"I don't care what you think; you have absolutely no idea what you are talking about." Famous hissed. He could have killed her for cornering him; but he wanted to wrap his arms around her, her eyes were red and puffy from crying.

"Please I know what you are and I don't care. I was scared out of my mind today, worried that I had lost you. You ran into a burning house Famous, did you even think about the people watching." Makoto said quietly, trying to not be angry.

"If you know what I am then you should care Makoto. I'm not human; in an instant I could kill you." Famous said, almost pleading with her.

"You're human enough to me." She sobbed.

"Human enough?" Famous roared, losing his temper, "you want to see how human I really am." He threw his coat on the ground pulling his shirt off and throwing it on top; lastly he pulled his glasses off and put them in his pants pocket. He stood tall and powerful, begging her to run away, to never look back. He loved her but he knew it could never be. "This is what I am Makoto, I'm a monster and I will kill you one day."

She didn't say a word, she was just staring at him crying; she was always crying. She took a few steps towards him, making him back up into the wall; his crimson eyes boring into her, begging her to leave. She put her hands on his chest and he felt his whole body shudder at her touch. He could feel his mind starting to slip, the air starting to charge; but she wasn't being affected.

"How are you doing that?" He asked quietly, almost a whisper. She chuckled slightly, pulling back from him to his slight disappointment. She reached into her shirt and pulled out a pendant that was hanging on a thin cord. He hadn't noticed the thin black cord around her neck, but his eyes were drawn to the pendant. It was rather large and completely wooden, surrounded by a few wooden beads on either side. The pendant was circular and carved to his creature's likeness. The wings half open making up most of the circle with the tail and body curled up underneath. "Where did you get this?" He breathed, unable to take his eyes away.

She didn't answer, she pulled the necklace off and put it over his head; readjusting the chain and rings that he was already wearing so that the pendant sat against his skin. She was so close to him; it was getting hard to hold onto his control. He picked up a strange scent suddenly; he was so lost in Makoto's that he almost didn't recognize it. A part of him was grateful for the intrusion.

"Lan, get out here!" He yelled, his voice shaking. The young boy stepped around the corner, looking down at the floor. He heard Makoto laugh quietly before she walked away, leaving him standing there top less and feeling like an idiot. He grabbed his coat and shirt and opened the door to his office, motioning Lan to follow him in.

"Famous I'm sorry, I didn't mean to intrude." Lan said quietly, walking into the office. Famous threw his coat onto the couch, pulling the t-shirt back on and taking a seat behind his desk. Lan stood there, not sure what to do.

"It's alright Lan." He said quietly, trying to regain control. He was really struggling without the brands; it was always a nasty side effect. He could feel Lan staring at him, knowing that he must be quite a sight at the moment. "What?"

"Are you ok?" Lan asked, his worry reflecting in his voice.

"You really need to stop asking me that." Famous said, trying his best to sound light hearted, but his voice was a low snarl. He could feel himself slipping, he needed to call Yuichiro. They hadn't talked since leaving the ruins of his house though; he didn't feel ready to look his brother in the eye yet.

"What can I do for you?" Lan asked, taking a step closer. Famous looked up at him, their eyes meeting. Lan felt a shiver run down his spine; he wasn't used to seeing his eyes and at the moment there was something odd in them. After a moment Famous got up and sat down on the couch.

"Has your father taught you his little trick yet? The one he used on Raika the other night?" He asked the boy, motioning to him to sit down.

"No, there hasn't really been anytime." Lan answered, sitting down next to him.

"Alright, well I need to teach you because I'm slipping and in a few minutes I'm going to be out of control." Famous said, pulling one of his gloves off to reveal more burns on his hand.

"Mr. Famous maybe you should call my dad, what if I can't figure it out?" Lan asked, starting to feel a little anxious.

"You'll be fine, it's easy and I'll talk you through it." Famous said, his voice cracking a little. He could feel the change trying to start. He held his hand up, "take my hand and close your eyes." Lan hesitated, remembering the jolt he got last time he touched him. Famous noticed his hesitation and pulled the wooden pendant out for Lan to see. "Don't worry, you won't get shocked."

Lan grabbed Famous' hand but kept his eyes open, every fiber of his body was telling him to run; something was coming. He could see Famous' face slightly scrunch up as he gripped Lan's hand tightly for a moment. He realized that the older man was in pain.

"I want you to picture your inner self moving from your mind down your arm and into my hand." Famous instructed his voice straining. Lan could see more scales starting to appear on him; but he did as he was told. He could feel an energy welling up in him and traveling the path that he had set up to Famous. But it stopped suddenly, almost like he had hit a wall. "You need to break through the wall to establish the connection, and I'm sorry but it's stronger than usual because I'm starting to change." Lan closed his eyes, focusing on the energy and trying to punch through the wall. A moment later and he felt a rush of foreign emotions flood his mind. He let out a weak gasp, he felt fury rush into him; threatening to swallow him up. "You need to focus on something calming; let it fill your mind." Famous growled, it was hard for him to talk; his vocal cords were morphing. He clutched the three rings he wore around his neck with his free hand.

Lan felt something punch through the fury; fear. He opened his eyes and saw Famous clutching at his chest, fear all over his face. Lan had never seen him scared before, it didn't suit the strong man. He closed his eyes, able to rise above the fury with his new determination. The first thing that popped into his head was Maylu; hanging out with her on his balcony in the warm summer sun, talking about nothing. He felt Famous loosen his grip slightly, without letting go of the emotion he opened his eyes. Famous was slumped in the couch, quickly changing back. He was breathing heavily, his hand massaging his eyes.

"Thank you Lan." He said weakly, letting go of the boy's hand. All his strength was gone, but so was the tugging in his mind. He looked over to Lan who was looking down at his hands; he looked upset. "Ask me anything."

"What?" Lan said, looking up at him; a faint smile on his face.

"Ask me anything. It's still going to be a little bit before I can even move, might as well have a conversation." Famous said, flashing Lan a smile. "But I hold the right to skip questions."

"Deal! What's your real name?" Lan started, knowing what the reply would be.

"Skip, come on you know what I won't answer." Famous said chuckling weakly. Lan thought for a moment, trying to think of something that wouldn't get skipped.

"What is up with you and my dad?" He asked, remembering that his father had never given him an answer.

"What do you mean?" Famous asked; trying to decide if that was something he wanted to talk about.

"I mean, you guys act like you're more than friends; I'm not really sure, I just sense something between you two." Lan explained, struggling to find the right words. Famous looked thoughtful for a moment.

"How old are you Lan?"

"Seventeen; I'll be eighteen in a few months though."

"I'm getting old," Famous chuckled, closing his eyes lost in thought. Lan wondered if he had fallen asleep. "What's going on between me and your dad you ask," he reached behind his neck and undid the chain and pulled the rings out of his shirt for Lan to see. One looked to be solid gold and plain, the other two had a precious stone in them. "These belonged to my parents Lan. It's all that I have left." He said sadly.

"What happened to them?" Lan asked quietly.

"They died when I was twelve. I used to live in ACDC town; your friend Yai's house is actually built over my old home's foundation. One night a fire broke out, swallowing the house unnaturally fast. I was the only one to make it out alive. When I woke up in the hospital they had told me that while I was in a coma Tadashi Hikari had filed paperwork to adopt me. He and my dad had been best friends, they probably had some agreement about taking me or Yuichiro in incase something happened. Legally my last name is Hikari, but I don't flaunt it around."

"So you and my dad are brothers?" Lan asked, feeling a lot of things click into place.

"Yes, we are." Famous answered weakly.

"So you're my Uncle?" Lan asked, a wicked smile spreading across his face.

"I will destroy you if you start with that crap." Famous said, trying to sound threatening.

"Yeah yeah I get it; I'll respect your privacy this time." Lan said, reassuringly. The phone on Famous' desk started ringing. He saw him try to get up to get it, but he could only pull himself forward a little bit. Lan got up and picked the phone up, handing it to him.

"What is it?" Famous asked into the phone, "Oh I see, we'll be right there." He hung up, placing the phone on the arm of the couch. "Chaud is waking up; we need to go see him."

"You couldn't even answer your own phone." Lan pointed out.

"You go ahead of me; I'll be there in a few minutes."

"Ok." Lan said, getting up to leave.

"Lan, not a word about this to your father, he will skin me alive." Famous said chuckling.

Lan looked back at him, flashing him a warm smile identical to his father's. "You got it Famous."