I love all of you who read, review, and support me. You guys are amazing. XD on the other hand, this story is fast approaching its end. It makes me rather sad, but I suppose all things end at some point.

And I apologize for the last cliffhanger, and for the upcoming one. Forgive me!

I'm sorry if the whole thing seems off or something. When I drafted the last three chapters originally, it was while I wrote the first chapter (and how long ago was that? Yikes. XD) So instead of deleting it and starting again (what can I say? I'm pretty lazy), I merely edited it and added what needed to be added to it. Huzzah. XD haha

On another note, I know I generally respond to the reviews when I can, and I haven't lately. My deepest apologies to you guys. I treasure your opinions, truly I do, and the reviews you give make me smile and completely make my day.

And now that that's done, because I know you're not here to hear me blabbering on, onto the story! XD

Read, enjoy, and don't forget to review!

Chapter 14

"No, you don't understand!" Lavi cried desperately, reaching for Bookman's arm to move the old man aside. His blood was cold, making him freeze, but Lavi couldn't stand by while they attempted to make Tyki into something he wasn't. Bookman wouldn't let him by, and Lavi struggled to get past him to Adam. "Wait, let me explain- - -"

"Quiet, Darryl!" Bookman hissed back, forcing him to stop by pushing him firmly in the opposite direction. Lavi was surprised enough to back away from Bookman. Was that his name, then? Darryl? It was a quiet, simple name, one easily thought of and just as easily forgotten; Lavi felt his upper li curl in distaste. It certainly wasn't a name he would have chosen for himself. "Let Adam speak."

"But he's not- - -" Lavi was interrupted again when Adam stood on top of a table, gaining everyone's attention from where they were watching Lavi with awe.

"The only way to deal with this creature," He yelled again to a frenzied crowd, "is to hunt it down and kill it!" The crowd cheered, and Lavi felt the blood drain quickly from his face, his body going cold once again. This wasn't the way he pictured his homecoming, not in a million years, and he feared for everyone at the castle: Rhode, Lenalee, Allen...Tyki. "That's the only way we know we'll be truly safe from this creature!"

"NO!" Lavi all but roared, finally pushing through Bookman and other people to grab Adam's arm. Fear coursed through him, making his blood pound in his ears and his hands shaky. "He's done nothing wrong- - -he stays in the castle with his family! Leave him alone!" Adam glared at him, and Lavi felt himself freeze again, for a much different reason.

"If you're not with us, you're against us!" Adam said firmly, moving to address the people again. Lavi growled and pulled at Adam's arm, preventing him from going anywhere.

"I'm against you, then." He snarled. Adam drew his arm back with a cringed look of disgust, and Lavi allowed his arm to slip out of his hand easily. "But I have proof that Tyki isn't the evil person you're making him out to be."

"Proof?" Adam said incredulously. "You have proof." Lavi was startled when Adam threw his head back and laughed maniacally, spreading his arms mockingly to the crowd. "All right, then, young man. Where is this 'proof' you have?"

"Here!" Lavi pulled the mirror out and cradled it against his chest almost fondly. Adam crept closer, eyeing it suspiciously. When he realized what it was, the aura around him turned dark with anger. Lavi, ignoring everything around him, tightened his hold on the mirror before looking down at it. "Please, show me Tyki!" He murmured desperately, fingers running over the gold design. The mirror flashed before revealing the master of the castle.

Lavi watched as Tyki shooed Lenalee away through his closed door, his eyes softening as in the mirror, Tyki turned his gaze to the forest just outside the window. Ignoring the rush of something he'd never felt before in his chest, Lavi lightly traced the figure before him before turning the mirror outward, showing Adam the image inside.

"Here is your supposed 'monster'!" Lavi yelled. "The one who is supposedly out to destroy your village!" Adam's eyes narrowed coldly under his glasses, the people around him gasping and pulling back in horror. "He's done nothing to gain your- - -"

A loud, almost heartbreaking howl echoed in the distance, the sound magnified by the mirror in Lavi's hands. Startled, the red head almost dropped the mirror in his haste to turn it around.

"What...?" He trailed off when, beside the mirror's image of a distraught Tyki, was the same man who'd been sneaking in and out of his room his last month there. They were both on their knees, on hand on the window and the other pressed against their forehead. On the pale man's face was an expression of utter devastation, a look Lavi was sure mirrored on Tyki's face. They were close together, almost overlapping one another, and in the back of his mind Lavi could feel himself trying to fit the pieces together. "Tyki?"

"You hear that?" Adam screamed, gaining everyone's attention again. He gestured towards the mirror and Lavi violently. "He wants out! He wants blood!" Women gasped, pulling smaller children towards them as if that would keep them safe. Lavi distantly heard more doors slam shut, men shooing home what women and children remained behind on the streets. "He'll come into our village and take what he wants, or who he wants, when he wants to! He'll put our entire village in danger!"

"That's not true!" Lavi yelled. He stepped towards the crowd, holding tightly to the mirror. "You have to trust me, I- - -" Adam grabbed his arms suddenly, pinning them behind the red head before he knew what was happening; Lavi struggled, trying to free himself, but before he could, Adam had stopped in front of Bookman.

"You're not part of this village." He said coldly. "You never were. But you were the one who came to us for the help in retrieving him," he shook Lavi once, as if the older man forgot the boy he'd been worried to death over the pastcouple of months, "and therefore you have a choice: you can join in with our cause, or suffer the same fate as your ward." Adam shook Lavi roughly again, and Lavi tried to aim a kick back in frustrated retaliation. He missed.

"Bookman, please..." Lavi met the old man's eyes, pleading his case silently. Bookman looked him over and sighed heavily, turning away.

"I want no part of your hunting party." He said finally. "But I join in your cause to protect your village." Adam nodded, pushing Lavi along until they came to an abandoned house. Despite the red head's struggles, Adam was able to open the doors leading to the basement and throw Lavi in; Lavi stumbled until he hit the wall opposite the door.

"Never fear, Darryl." Adam said coldly; Lavi felt a scowl cross his face at both the name and the casual, almost friendly way Adam said it. "Your precious monster will not live long enough to miss your presence for very much longer."

Lavi's eyes widened in horror, and he pushed himself off the wall; he darted forward, arms outstretched, reaching the door just as Adam slammed it shut and chained it. Undeterred, Lavi crashed into the heavy wood made heavier by the chain locking it, pushing and pounding at the door uselessly.

"Shit!" Lavi collapsed on the floor in a crumpled heap of black cloth and furious body. "I can't believe I came back for this- - -I'm so stupid!" He hit the ground angrily, tears forming in his eyes from a combination of the throbbing pain in his hand and frustration at getting caught and trapped in someone's basement.

He sat up suddenly, eye darting around in the dark room to see if he could find anything to break him out if the room he had managed to get himself locked in. It was a big room, bare of virtually everything save a bed and a writing desk. It reminded Lavi of his basement room in the village, the one he had when he shared a home with Bookman the year previous, and a sudden thought struck him.

There was obviously no other door, but he remembered looking around the basement a few days before Bookman agreed to live in the house. Back then, he had found a trap door which lead into the house, making him come up in what turned out to be their study/living area/dining room. Would such a trap door be here, as well?

He scrambled for his bag (if he was looking for the trap door, he would need something hard to discern where the floor sounded different), picking it off the bed where he had left it and dropping it in his haste to open it. Cursing quietly, Lavi froze when he heard a muffled 'ow!' from inside the bag. Blinking slowly, Lavi gently picked the bag off of the floor and opened it gingerly, peering into it curiously.

Rhode glared back up at him.

"You didn't have to drop us, you know." She said seriously, her violet eyes glancing around what little of the room she could see. Lavi placed the bag on the bed again, and Rhode hopped out, inspecting the room again now that she was no longer trapped in a bag.

"'Us'?" He repeated curiously. Rhode nodded, turning to face Lavi once more.

"Yes, 'us'." She said shortly, and Lavi winced- - -the girl was unhappy. Rhode continued, and Lavi could picture her with her hands in her hips, weight on one foot, her eyes narrowed in a glare as they were now. "We came to ask you to come back, Lavi. Or should I just drop all the pretenses now and just call you Darryl now?" Underneath her anger, Lavi could see the hurt in her eyes, and he tried to fix the situation as best he could.

"No, Rhode, Lavi is fine..." He started gently, but she cut him off when she spun around.

"Stop." She ordered firmly, taking a deep breath and sighing. "You lied. To all of us." Lavi winced and leaned down until his eye was level with the small teacup's. Rhode glared at him, trying to keep a straight face, but Lavi could seethe confusion and betrayal in her eyes and face. "Why would you do that?"

"I'm sorry, Rhode, honestly, I - - -"

"Miss Rhode." A voice cut across his apology and Lavi looked down, startled, to see a determined looking figurine normally found in the gardens climbing out of the bag as well- - -Komui, Lenalee's big brother. He was one of the few workers in the castle Lavi hadn't met, but the gardener was one that the red head heard plenty of. Currently, he dutifully ignored Lavi's startled gasp and stood before the girl. "We had come to bring Lavi back to the castle for Master Tyki, correct?" The girl made a face, but nodded nonetheless. Komui smiled gently at the girl, his silver arms resting atop the brim of her cup, his arms wrapping around the small girl comfortingly (he had lots of experience consoling young girls, thanks to Lenalee). "Then we shall return to the castle with him for now- - -" Lavi smiled slightly at having an ally in some way, until the man turned and smiled sinisterly at him. "- - -where we can subject him to the wrath of one of my Komurins!" The man laughed gleefully, and Lavi felt something sink in his stomach.

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After Lavi left, the small group slowly dispersed. Skinn climbed up to his perch again, his ghost turning lighter as he moved to sit higher than he normally did, placing himself in the morning sun and making himself appear paler than normal. Lenalee sighed heavily and moved towards the kitchen, and Kanda followed Allen to the library. Lulubell, being followed by Mimi, walked gracefully up to the door.

"Skinn." She called loudly out the open door. The guardian called grunted, by it didn't deter the blonde. "Get your ass down here, Skinn, now." Grumbling, the bulky male swung around and dropped down on the ground, peering up at her.

"Lulu." He growled calmly. She regarded him coldly for a short moment, his eyes sharp and piercing.

"We mustn't let anyone else into our home." The blonde said after a few tense, silent moments interrupted by the occasional 'mew' from the black cat curled at Lulubell's feet. "Therefore, you should watch anyone who is headed in our direction, and let me know immediately." Skinn nodded, confused but not willing to cross the severe blonde woman. Her eyes moved to the forest, watching as though she expected someone to emerge through the trees. "This was one close call. Lavi will be back, and we mustn't allow anyone else to undo what has already been done."

"How do you know Lavi's coming back, Mistress Lulubell?" Mimi asked, refusing to keep quiet behind her. Lulubell moved her gaze to Mimi's, her eyes blank.

"I don't know if that idiot will come back." She said quietly. "None of us do."

"Then why hold our breath for him?" Mimi asked, her fingers twirling in her blue pigtail, a petulant expression on her face. "We should at least hope someone will break this damn spell!"

"We are hoping!" Skinn growled at the same Lulubell's human hand ghosted through Mimi's cheek, causing the girl's face to twist the side. The slap that would normally echo through the empty hall was distant-sounding and faint, and Mimi whimpered slightly from where she stood.

"We can't allow for doubt to enter this place any more than it already has." Lulubell snapped, glaring at the maid before her. "As it is, we're suffering the blow from him leaving. We can't think that Lavi won't come back."

"Besides," Skinn said with a grin, "we sent two people who will bring him back for sure!" Mimi looked confused, but Lulubell nodded, giving them both a rare, never-before-seen smile.

"That's right." She said thoughtfully. "All we can do is continue on with our life and hope they'll come back soon." After a few moments, Lulubell shook her head and sighed. "All right, enough of this foolishness. Skinn, back to work. Don't let anyone else in this castle. I need to tell the others." With a nod, Skinn climbed to the top of his perch again, feeling fully confident for the first time their plan would work.

Unfortunately, several hours after he had finished talking with Lulubell, Skinn noticed smoke coming from the woods. Confused, and feeing like everything was going wrong, the main guardian climbed to a higher point of the castle to get a better view.

"Shit." He groaned, seeing the tops of people's heads from where his human form stood. "Jasdevi! Krory!" Almost instantly, the human forms of the two boys, Jasdero on Devitto's shoulders as usual, and that tallest male in the castle appeared by his side. Ignoring the two youngest's normal bickering, Skinn pointed in the direction of the smoke. "Over there- - -what do you see there?"

"It appears to be..." Krory trailed off as he peered closer. "Why, it appears to be a large group of people!" He exclaimed in surprise, almost as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing. "Are they headed this way?"

"What?" The boys yelped, Jasdero surprising Krory by jumping off Devitto's back and onto the taller man's. "No way, no way!" The blonde boy cried, scrambling onto Krory's shoulders at the same time Devitto growled out "You're fucking joking!"

"Why are they coming here?" Krory asked, wringing his hands fretfully. "Are they people from the village? I haven't met any of them! None of us have been to the village in ages! And they seem so angry. What could we have possibly done to anger them?"

"That's not important." Skinn growled. "We need to warn everyone. Get back to your stations. Jasdevi, warn the workers in the gardens. Krory, tell everyone in your area." They all saluted, Jasdero crawling back towards his partner in crime.

"There's going to be a war, Devi." Jasdero giggled, his eyes widening in an almost terrifying manner. "A big war, one that will have much much bloodshed. Won't that be fun, Devi?"

"Only if I get to fight too!" The darker teen growled playfully, tackling the blonde and making them fall off the roof.

"Is there really going to be a war?" Krory asked, panic in his voice. "I don't know if I could handle a war! Oh, no, what are we going to do?"

"Shut up!" Skinn snapped, cuffing Krory's arm slightly. Krory whimpered softly, but Skinn ignored it in favor of pushing the taller towards his statue. "Go do as I said. We'll find a way through this." Krory sniffled but nodded, jumping down to his place.

Feeling an unusual sense of unease, Skinn followed them to his spot in front of the castle.

Several hours later found Miranda, Kanda, Allen, Lenalee, and every other enchanted objected that could leaned against the door as best they could, giving each other worried glances with each warning signal that came from Skinn. The attackers so far were far enough that they couldn't hear Skinn alerting the castle to their approach, but the fact that they were so close made them all nervous. It wasn't midday any longer, twilight was fast approaching, but it was approaching too slowly- - -at this rate, they wouldn't even be human enough to defend their home.

If they would even turn tonight.

"What do we do?" Mimi asked, her brown eyes terrified as she huddled near Lulubell, who was looming protectively over Lenalee; the blonde ghost stood with one hand on Lenalee's shoulder, the other on Mimi's, her expression closed off and cold. Mimi looked from Lulubell to Miranda to Kanda to Allen, hopeful that one of them had some semblance of a plan. When none came forward, she sniffled lightly, tears in her eyes.

"I don't know yet," Allen said firmly, "But whether or not we turn human tonight is not factoring in this." He looked at all his friends around him and his silver gaze hardened slightly. "It's been on my mind ever since Lavi left, and I'm sure it's been on some of your minds too." He took a deep breath, not sure how to continue but making it up as he went along. "But right now, being human or not doesn't matter. We've all lived here for a while, some more than others," he amended slightly with a pointed look at Lenalee, who smiled back, "And this is our home. We need to defend it as best we can!"

"And just how do you suggest we do that, Moyashi?" Kanda asked dryly. Allen thought for a moment, then reached over to the communication system they had set up with Skinn, the one they created when they first turned human. The wire, connected to two different makeshift speakers, was hidden along the doorframe and hidden by the stone statue that was Skinn, allowed communication between the guardian and the castle members he guarded.

"How long until they get here?" Allen asked. It was quiet for a moment as the protector and guardian judged the villager's distance and how long it would take them to cover it.

"About two hours, give or take." Was the response. "For such a big group, they move faster than Lavi had. They must have some sort of motivation or something to be moving as quickly as they are now." Kanda cursed, Lenalee and Mimi gasped with wide eyes, Lulubell's eyes narrowed as the black cat arched her back and hissed. Allen contemplated and looked around the living room.

"They don't know this is an enchanted place, do they?" He asked slowly. They all turned to look at him curiously, and Allen gave them all a dark grin that sent shivers down each of them. "I may have found our advantage, hehe..."

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Adam glared hatefully at the castle that loomed before him. Despite the fact that it had taken all day to reach said castle, he was the only one not out of breath and able to look upon in. It looked well-cared for, if not abandoned, and the thought made his scowl deeper. Leading the village men, he strode right up to the door, sparing not a glance at whatever they saw that frightened them as they approached the door. Throwing open the heavy piece of wood, Adam strode right into the main hall.

"We're here!" He called out mockingly. "Anybody home?" Silence greeted him, and he turned to the men standing just outside the door. "What on earth is your problem?" He snapped. Instead of answering, one of them pointed at the space above the door, terrified. Annoyed, Adam walked over to see what they were looking at.

Glaring down at them was an enormous stone statue, face twisted in fury. It loomed over them all dangerously, looking as though any moment it would reach down and grab a few of them. The stone statue looked, for all intents and purposes, as if it would kill them easily and without hesitation.

(Skinn glowered at them from the sides as well, knowing fully that none of the humans there could see his true form. It gave him a great sense of satisfaction to know that his statue alone was terrifying enough to make them all stop in their tracks, though he knew it wouldn't be enough to keep them from entering the castle. Hoping that Allen's plan was going to work, Skinn forced himself to stay still and not move while the men from the village gathered around one another in fear.

Across the castle, Jasdevi shifted and whined in annoyance and worry, knowing that there were intruders in the castle and that Skinn couldn't hold them off alone; they wanted desperately to go help, just so they could fight, but the sun was still up and they couldn't move from the south part of the castle they were stationed at. Between them and Skinn, Krory bared his fangs angrily, wanting to help as well but not being able to leave where he stood; Allen had ordered him to stay put, in case some of the intruders decided to find another way into their home. They all were to wait until nightfall, when they could finally join the fight.)

"You are all afraid...of a statue." Adam said slowly as he looked them over. One of the braver men, a young man named Toma, stepped forward slightly.

"We expected them, especially because it's such an old castle, but there's something different about this one in particular." He explained, glancing back up at it. "It's almost as if this one protects the castle, and it's good at its job." Adam snorted, reaching out and grabbing a man at random, pulling them forcefully over the threshold.

"Just get inside." He demanded harshly. The men all obeyed him quickly, almost tripping over themselves to get inside. Toma stood outside for a few moments longer, staring up at the great stone creature before him.

"Please excuse us." He said quietly, placing his hands together and lifting them towards Skinn, bowing his head. His soft statement didn't go unnoticed, and when the young man went inside, Skinn made a mental note to keep an eye out for him.

They all stood behind Adam in the hallway. The main hallway was enormous, with a beautiful table every fifty or so feet on one side and a row of armor on the other. There were beautiful windows, the setting sun visible in the cut glass. The men looked around in surprised awe, with comments here and there about the decor of the hall. Adam's arm twitched, and he felt the urge to try to summon his magic again.

"Look," He snarled, grabbing their attention. "You lot do what you want with the castle. Take what you can carry if you wish." The men nodded in agreement. "I'm going to slay this monster!" They cheered for him, and with their support, Adam turned and went down the hall, beginning his search for the creature.

Once he was far enough, he stopped. Holding out his arm curiously, Adam closed his eyes and began his usual exercises for summoning his magic.

It came easily, like water flowing through a river, surprising Adam with how much he gathered in a few short seconds. With a grin that was starting to widen to it's original shape, Adam allowed the magic to lead him up the stairs down twisting hallways, further and further away from the group gathered at the front door.

Toma broke away from the group first, wandering down the hallway and stopping by a table, picking up a silver candlestick.

(Above them, in the rafters, Lulubell tensed, her cat form arching its back and hissing quietly, her human ghost tightening her grip on the rafter below her; Lenalee gasped quietly, the teapot worrying her lip while her ghost grabbed Lulubell's arm, as he inspected Allen.)

"What a beautiful candlestick." He commented to himself, turning it in as many directions he could. "Elicia would love this, no doubt about it." With a gentle smile, Toma placed it back down next to the dark blue clock that stood beside it. Picking that up just as gently as he had the candlestick, Toma inspected it just as carefully, muttering a simple "Interesting..." under his breath before placing that down in its space once more and continuing down the hall, oblivious to the hidden incredulous stares he got from the object he was just holding and the ones hidden in the rafters. Kanda and Allen, standing beside their respective castle items, visibly relaxed, sharing slightly relieved glances at each other. While their placement wasn't important for the last minute defense plan Allen created, it would have been so much harder to attack from inside a bag.

Allen looked up at Lulubell and Lenalee, and both girls read the expression in his eyes.

Be careful with that one- - -he could be convinced to join our side.

Nodding once, the girls moved towards the highest point in the castle, the attic where Mimi and several other girls- - -mostly assorted teacups and dusters from the servant's quarters.

"Well?" Mimi asked earnestly, her big brown eyes wider than normal. "What's the word, girls? Can we start yet?"

"We're just about ready." Lulubell toned blandly, fingers running through her loose blonde hair. Pulling it all up into one ponytail, Lulubell tied the strands on her head and opened her mouth to keep talking just as the sun set fully.

She vanished, the black cat giving off a quiet 'mew' as an order.

The girls gave each other panicked looks, uncertain of what to do, before Lenalee swallowed heavily and took control.

"So that takes care of one thing." She said shakily, gaining everyone's attention. "We aren't turning human tonight." A girl sniffled, and Lenalee hastened to speak over her. "Thankfully, our plan works just as good now- - -better, actually!" Mimi turned away from a clearly sulking Lulubell to face Lenalee. There was a fire in her eyes, one that hadn't been seen since the curse began.

"What do we do?" She asked. Lenalee smiled and gathered the girls around her.

"We need to get word to the kitchens and tell them when all the townspeople are in the castle." She started. "The trick is to hurt them enough to get them out, but not to kill." The girls nodded as Lenalee told them the whole plan, grins widening as they listened to the idea created to protect their home.

Several minutes of quick preparation later found them all ready and in place. Mimi stood just inside the door leading to the main hallway, watching as the men entered slowly after one another. Strategically placed in the rafters were the teacups, all from the kitchens and the servants quarters, Lenalee included, all filled to the brim with scalding water that did nothing to the glass cups, but would significantly burn the men below them. Miranda, shaking obvious only to those who would look for it, stood by the stairway leading to the upper levels of the castle and the door that would lead to the dining hall.

"Now!" Mimi signaled. Lenalee nodded as best she could as the men lined up underneath them.

"Now!" The teapot ordered, causing them all to look up in confusion. As soon as they did, Lenalee leaned forward, emptying her contents onto the one below her. The rest of the teacups did the same, causing the men below them to collectively cry out in agony. They scattered, and the chaos began.

Kanda, using the sharpest knife he could find in place of the unusable Mugen in his room, began slicing at their legs, causing them to trip and fall to the floor. Allen, defending Mimi when one of the men grabbed her and began ripping the feathers out of the duster she had turned into, used the fire from the candlestick to burn him into dropping her. Miranda, with a loud wail and scream, threw the doors to the cabinet open just as two men ran at her. Hitting one and knocking him out, the other she was forced to hit with the many drawers that lined half of the space inside her. Jasdevi and Krory, able to abandon their guard spots for the first time in almost two years, joined; the combined boys swung in through the window and, laughing crazily in Jasdero's normal manner, they began almost sadistically fighting whomever ran at them. Krory, in his unusual style of fighting, apologized each time he hit someone hard enough to knock them into the wall opposite him, defending his home even while regretfully fighting the men invading it.

The garden squad, finding one of Komui's unused, yet completed, creations he called 'Komurins', managed to find a way to activate it. It was tearing through the castle hallway, picking up villager's and flinging them out of the castle in the direction of their village (Reever was wondering how injured they would be when they landed, but couldn't being himself to care much. Though the Komurins were extremely dangerous, these men were trying to destroy the castle. Reever figured they were about even.), screaming. Johnny was paying close attention to the controls, moving the huge hunk of tools in ant direction Reever told him to. The rest of the tools were fighting the villagers in a more hand-to-hand (so to speak) combat.

The door creaked open, and everyone turned to see a tall red head standing in the doorway, Rhode and Komui with him.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Lavi had his head in his hands, Komui searching the grounds nearby, and Rhode glaring hatefully at him, when the first sounds of the chain clinking caught his attention. Quieting Komui hurriedly and holding Rhode (she agreed after a hesitant second), Lavi made his way to the door, pressing his back against the wall beside it. Outside, the rattling was getting slightly louder; words began to accompany the clinking noises until- - -

CRASH!

The entirety of the wooden door came crashing down to the ground, the chains rattling even more as the silver metal followed suit before hanging in midair. Komui, standing next to Lavi, climbed up his leg and pulled himself into his pocket; Rhode burrowed herself against Lavi's shirt with a muffled noise that sounded suspiciously like a squeak.

"Darryl?" Came a questioning voice; Lavi felt himself draw back at the familiar-yet-unfamiliar name. "Darryl, where are you? Show yourself, my boy!"

"Quiet, old fool." Lavi felt his eyebrow raise when the slurred voice of Cross rang throughout the basement. "Oi! Idiot boy! Can you hear me?" Rhode shook when Lavi opened his mouth, so he leaned back harder against the wall, staying silent. Cross waited a few moments before cursing under his breath; Lavi could hear the annoyance in the man's voice when he spoke again. "Foolish child, I'll tell you this one time, understand? You've got to get back to the castle before Adam and his mob get there. If you leave now, you may have a few minutes to warn them!"

"If you get caught again, though, we can't help you a second time." Came the first voice. After a few moments, Lavi recognized it as the old painter he had met just days before coming to the castle. Tiedoll. "So be on your guard, son, all right?" Lavi bit his lip, debating for a few moments. In the silence, he could hear the two men turn slightly and prepare to leave.

"Wait!" He cried, running towards them and standing in the light the open door created. Both men turned, Tiedoll with a relieved look on his face and Cross barely hiding his irritation.

"Where was this when we freed you, and I was telling you what to do?" The older red head snapped, glaring at him through the white mask on his face. Lavi ignored his question, looking from Cross to Tiedoll and back.

"Why would you free me?" He asked faintly. "Aren't you guys...?"

"We hope you'll help our boys." Tiedoll said cheerfully. "You're so close already, we can tell. It'll only just be a bit longer, then our boys will come back to us, I'm certain of it." Lavi rubbed his face, confused. It showed on his face, because Tiedoll placed a hand on his shoulder and looked the younger boy in the eye. "As you know, Cross' apprentice Allen Walker is there, in the castle," both ignored Cross when he began mumbling about the debts he needed to pay off, both far too used to the man's gambling ways and horrible habits, "but my own child, Kanda, is there as well."

"Kanda's your son?" Lavi asked incredulously, looking the old man over. It was hard to believe Kanda even knew this man, let alone was raised by him. The cobalt clock was so harsh and angry all the time, with violence not far from his mind and a steady willingness to fight whenever he could. That such a boy could come from (well, from what Lavi could gather in his two short meetings with the man) a man so warm and welcoming, with polite manners and a comforting aura.

"Now isn't the time to go over family history!" Cross snapped, reaching over and grabbing Lavi by the back of his shirt. Ignoring the younger boy's startled yelp, Cross dragged him a few feet before pushing him in the direction of a horse. Lavi stared at him with wide eyes, so stunned he wasn't able to react when Cross reached over and forcefully tugged the eyepatch away from his face, breaking the string holding it together. Dangling the destroyed eyepatch and grinning at the design traced around Lavi's eye, Cross made a shooing motion with his other hand. "Go on, then. To make up for the lost time, you should allow that young mistress in your hands to dictate a shorter route to her home. You clearly need all the help you can get, and for the moment, that young lady happens to be your greatest asset, my friend."

Rhode turned slightly, peering at Cross with one of her violet eyes.

"Thank you for helping us." She said quietly. "You've completely changed my horrible thoughts of you. You may actually be somewhat decent." Cross snorted as Lavi placed her gently into his bag with Komui.

"Don't misunderstand, milady." Cross held the bag open so he could see her properly, grinning almost maliciously. "I lent my apprentice to your home, and I need him back. There's no one else to pay my debts, you see, and I'll be needing him back, preferably as soon as possible. And the only way to ensure I get him back as soon as humanly possible to pay off the huge amounts I owe, is to ensure that this boy admits what he won't and reverse this mess." There was a beat of silence, Rhode staring with wide eyes and a slightly dropped jaw.

"And now you've returned to the bad side of my thoughts." Rhode said with a cleared throat. "You've managed to prove Lenalee wrong." Cross grinned.

"Good luck." He handed Lavi the bag as Lavi situated himself on the horse.

"Are you certain I can do this?" Lavi asked, gathering his courage to go back to the castle and, among others, Tyki. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the pale, faint form of a young girl with long hair settle herself behind him; pale, barely there arms wrapped around his stomach, though he couldn't feel them around him.

"We have the utmost faith in you, my boy." Tiedoll said firmly, giving Lavi an encouraging smile.

"Just follow my instructions and we'll get there fine." Rhode told him irritably, moving herself to balance precariously near the reins of the horse. "And, so help me, if you let me fall, I will make you regret it more than the fact that you hid your true name from us, whoever it is you are."

"I said I was sorry already!" Lavi told her as they began their journey. "And I told you, it's Lavi. My name is Lavi." Rhode glared at him from under the brim of her cup, sparing only a glance at the sun.

"We're so far behind them." She said instead, completely disregarding Lavi. "You'll really have to move it if we plan to catch up in any way at all."

"All right." Lavi sighed, shaking his head at Rhode's stubbornness. "Let's ride!"

Lavi paid close attention to the girl in his hand, following the directions she gave to a quicker path to the castle (what he would have gave to have this knowledge his first time around...). The ride passed in semi-silence, Rhode not willing to speak to Lavi aside from giving him instructions to her home. All too soon, they were at the steps of the castle; it was just a bit after the sun set, and the lack of Skinn guarding the front entrance made Lavi weary. He had never known the guardian to move from his perch, and the fact he had done so worried not only the red head, but Rhode as well.

"I suppose we got here when we could." She said finally, glancing uncomfortably at the shadows around them. "Perhaps it's best to talk about your lies after we've helped out, yes?"

"I said I was sorry." Lavi grumbled as he got off the horse, placing her on his shoulder.

"I know."

"Will you not forgive me, Mistress Rhode?" Lavi asked almost teasingly, shouldering his bag after placing Komui on the ground. He smiled when the head gardener raced towards the heavy doors of the castle.

"I'll leave that to my uncle." Rhode said indifferently. "Until then, we must see what these brutes are doing to my home, and see how we shall save it."

"As you wish." Lavi grumbled, following Komui and forcing the door open to complete and utter chaos. Lavi was surprised to see the entire castle armed and fighting; Rhode gasped in his ear, her eyes wide with shock, and somehow her gasp caught the attention of everyone in the room. Everyone stopped a moment, turning to face the door.

Upon seeing Lavi standing in the doorway, Komui dropping out of the boy's bag and Rhode on his shoulder, the inhabitants of the castle breathed a sight of relief. Lenalee, still in the rafters, shared a relieved look with Allen. Miranda, still hitting a man with her drawers, nearly started crying in relief. Jasdevi used their hair as a way to throw a man out of their way and in a random direction of a wall, giving the red head a huge grin and thumbs up. Krory had tears running down his face, his hands clasped and his eyes shining in happiness. Kanda 'hmm'ed, but allowed Lulubell past him when she approached Lavi and began pushing him in the direction of one of the upper halls.

Everything seemed to be going well, until there was a muffled crash and the sound of glass hitting the floor.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Adam stormed down the hallway, feeling the something gathering in his hands and pooling from his fingertips up to his wrists in a matter of seconds as he moved. He knew, without a doubt, that dark matter crackling with small volts of electricity was visible on both hands, and the thought of them there made an enormous smile cross his face easily. It was the easiest his magic had come to him yet, and he had yet to feel the usual after-effects that he normally felt. It made him grin wider than normal, and he could feel the magic coursing through him and altering his appearance slightly.

He made his way through the castle, kicking open the doors to every room he came across. Though each door led to an empty room, he didn't allow it to deter him; he was on a mission to find the so-called master of the castle.

"Lord Tyki Mikk!" He called, sarcasm and mockery dripping from his voice. "Lord Tyki Mikk, come out and face me! Come out!" His voice echoed in the hallways with no answer, and his face turned into a scowl as he kicked the next door with more force; the door splintered as it hit the wall, but he paid it no mind. "Where are you, you ungrateful son of a bitch? Stop acting like a coward and face me!"

"What is it you want?" Adam whirled around, hearing Tyki's voice in the echoing hallway. "What is your business here, stupid human?" A snarled grin made its way onto Adam's face.

"You'll find I'm more than a mere human, Tyki." He growled out. Swinging a fist out in a wide arc, Adam felt more than saw his hand hit the monster. There was a surprised grunt from the creature, and Adam felt his grin widen impossibly. He paused momentarily to pull out a sword from nowhere, and swung outwards with it.

It hit the wall, completely missing his target.

"Stop hiding!" He snapped. "You will come out to fight like a man!"

"And since when do I take orders from the likes of you?" Adam barely had time to turn around when a clawed hand reached out of the darkness beside him. The sharpened nails cut through his sleeve and arm, making blood trail down his arm and drip off his hand.

"I heard that you very rarely fight anymore, Lord Tyki Mikk." Adam snarled, twisting around to find him, ignoring the question thrown at him. The blood dripping from his wound only fueled the dark energy around his hands, and each drop that left his fingertips made him grip the sword in his hand even tighter. "You're not the monster you had been trained to be any longer, are you?"

"It's true." Came in a slow admittance. "I never leave this castle. It leaves very few options to prey on the weak, wouldn't you say?" Adam snorted, swinging his sword around just in time to come face to face with Tyki Mikk himself. Their swords clashed together, Adam's swinging from below to block the downward strike meant to injure him. Tyki snarled wordlessly, pressing his weight into the strike, the edge of his blade sliding against Adam's; the angle of their swords brought them closer and closer together, until the hilts met and they were stalemated. Tyki's hard gaze met Adam's, his eyes somehow finding the other's underneath the dark shadows both the castle and his hat provided.

"You've grown weak." Adam hissed angrily. "It's pathetic. Was one young man really able to cripple you so much, undo all those years of cunning words and harsh blows?" Tyki ignored the question, bringing his leg up and kicking out at Adam just as the sun set in the distance. Glancing at the newly darkened sky, Tyki only had a flicker of confusion go through his mind before he was blocking an attack from Adam.

"You know nothing of me!" Tyki snapped back, backing away under the sudden barrage of the other man. Adam laughed manically, thriving under the ever-growing strength of magic rushing through him.

"You misunderstand, my boy." He yelled, locking swords withTyki long enough to pull him close and turn him around, forcing Tyki through the room he had taken shortly after the disappearance of the Millennium Earl- - -the enormous master bedroom shrouded in shadows, the blooming rose and the lone Tease hidden safely away in the farthest corner of the room. Tyki grunted when his back met the window harshly, the glass cracking underneath him with the force Adam used to pin him in place. Their swords were still locked, the blades turned to keep Tyki from leaning too far forward by being placed at his throat. Adam leaned forward with a grin, pushing the edges of both blades further into Tyki's throat. "I know more about you than you'd think."

With that last word, Adam pulled Tyki forward and pushed him against the double window, harder than he had before, and the glass shattered underneath him. With a loud yell, they both fell out of the window, landing with a crash on the balcony the story below; glass rained down on the both of them as they rolled around on the floor, swords abandoned in the fall. Adam growled when Tyki's claws sliced through his arm again. Tyki grunted when Adam's knee landed on his stomach, the man's entire weight on his knee. The glass crunched underneath them as they rolled around in their fistfight, not picking a side and just slicing through whatever was unlucky enough to get caught on its sharp edges. Adam threw himself forward, aiming a punch at Tyki's face just as the younger managed to bring his leg up; using his shin and ignoring the glass digging into his back, Tyki kicked and forced the man over his head, sending him sliding through the glass and coming to an abrupt stop as his head met the railing of the balcony.

Forcing himself up and twisting around, Tyki barely noticed the few audience members they seemed to have gained; instead, he grabbed the sword nearest to him and advanced on the man leaning heavily against the railing, hand on his head. Closing in, ignoring the blood trickling down various cuts and scrapes from the glass, Tyki raised the sword above his head- - -

And dropped it behind him, his hands falling immediately to his stomach. Adam peered up at him with a distorted grin, his hand wrapped tightly around the sudden dagger halfway into the other's stomach.

"Never underestimate the opposition, Tyki." He pushed the dagger further in, forcing the addressed to take a small step back. With a harsh laugh, Adam kicked Tyki just under the area of penetration, forcing him to stumble back even more; Tyki tripped, landing harshly on the glass while blood trickled out around the dagger in his stomach.

His breath came in short, shallow pants; with a slight groan, Tyki bit his lip and began slowly, painfully, inching the dagger out. Blood gushed out with each freed sliver of silver, making the task harder than it should have been. Vaguely, Tyki heard a strangled cry coming from the glass doors leading to the balcony, a cry that sounded suspiciously like Rhode's, but he found he couldn't focus much on that. A random thought flew by- - -he was grateful that Lavi had left early that morning- - -before Tyki felt himself lose consciousness.