WE HAVE A NEW READER!!! The Girl in the Moon!! THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR REVIEWING!!!

Anyway, after we finish with the Silent Noise problem, I'll be starting a new story for our protagonists! That way this story won't have 100 chapters or something..

Okay, here is the next chapter.... look at chapter 12 for disclaimer and I want 4 reviews before I update!

Chapter 13

I'll Cover You

"That's all she said?" Caterina asked as Abel finished his story of what happened on his 'Date'.

He nodded, his face looking grim. The Sun had long since set and office's artificial light gave the Priest an eerie glow.

"A traitor…" Caterina looked lost in thought. "Even Francesco wouldn't want Rome to fall."

"My Lady should not take 'Jazz Hands' recommended course of action." The statue near the door seemed to come alive. The Priest had short auburn hair and eyes to match, and his cassock was spotless. Neither his voice nor his face showed any emotion.

The assembly of nuns and priests gathered around the Cardinal nodded. There was Leon (who had been revived), Hugue (who escaped), Loretta (who was avoiding Leon), the Professor (an aging priest with short brown hair parted down the side, a cane in one hand and a pipe in another), and Sister Kate (a see-through nun with blonde hair, blue eyes with a mole right underneath her right eye).

"Tres! These people could be-" Abel was trying to convince the living doll to join his side.

"Negative, Father Nightroad. We have insufficient data on them." Tres' monotone voice cut through Abel's attempted argument. The silver haired priest's hands clenched. The one that had held 'Jazz Hands' hours before was still surprisingly warm to him.

"Why don't you ask…" Sister Loretta trailed off when Lady Caterina turned her piercing glaze on her. They would not be asking the Pope. Not now at least.

Father Leon turned to the silent Hugue. "Hey, Lolitacon! Did you get anything out of your Lolita?"

The room turned to the blushing Frenchman. It took all his will not to put his hand to his lips. "We didn't talk-"

Leon burst into laughter again. "I noticed!"

"Ara? What are you two talking about?" Abel remembered the state of the room where he caught up to 'Jazz Hands'. He still didn't know what had happened.

"That little Lolita shows up outta nowhere and smacks Hugue one right on the lips!" Leon was having far too much fun at the expense of the blond priest.

Father Hugue looked like he wanted nothing more than to sink into the carpet.

Lady Caterina had enough of the nonsense of her priests and turned back to the matter at hand. "Did they say anything else, Abel?"

He tilted his head to the side. "Only that they'd be unavalible tomorrow and the Silent Noise will go off on Saturday's Sunset Mass."

The Professor, William Walter Wordsworth, chewed on the end of his pipe. "That only gives us today, tomorrow and Saturday." He turned to Caterina for his next question. "How many bells have been checked?"

Sister Kate, the Captain of the Iron Maiden II, answered. "38 percent. We should be done long before Sunset Mass."

Abel chewed on the gloved nail of his thumb. "So we're going to ignore the threat of a traitor for now?"

"The Silent Noise comes first, Abel." Lady Caterina's tone left no room for arguments.

The Priest nodded solemnly. 'I'll just have to pray that everything turns out alright.'

Mar let the hot water massage out all the cares and worries of the day… or at least most of them. Many of her 'cares and worries' would need a seriously devoted masseuse to get out.

'It would take hours.' She thought as she rested her head against the cooler tile of the shower. 'Maybe even days.'

Her arms wrapped around herself as she tried to mimic the feeling of Abel's strong arm around her.

'I like him.' She was too old to deny something like that. Her eyes' fluttered closed as her train of thought continued. 'It won't work though. Sain and Hugue have more of a chance…'

Her heart clenched and her hand went up to cover the hidden wound that was taking place in her chest. She loved Sain and didn't want to see her hurt. 'He'll hurt her, doesn't she see that? It won't work out! We're too…' Her eyes threatened to well up, and for once she let them.

She wasn't in the habit of feeling sorry for herself. Sain made sure of that. But sometimes…

She placed her hands on the tile, her fingers digging into the cracks.

'Sometimes the world is so cruel, I can't help but cry.'

She didn't cry for herself. She cried for Sain, for Hugue, for Abel, for Andro, for Noélle…

She cried for lost dreams and loves that would never be.

"Are you trying to drown yourself?!" Sain called from outside the door. Her over-sized, pink nightshirt was on and a plushy from her favorite character in a long forgotten game was being crushed in her arms. The water turned off a moment later and Mar appeared in the doorway with nothing but a towel on.

"I'm sorry." Mar had stopped crying a while ago but didn't want Sain to know. "I'm afraid I used all the hot water-"

Sain shot across the little distance between them and tightened her arms around Mar's far too thin waist. For once she was glad she was so skinny, Sain's small arms could wrap all the way around her.

"I don't care about that." Sain's voice was muffled by the towel. "Just don't leave me."

Mar let out a soft sigh, her hand coming up to tangle in Sain's undone hair. The clock above the lit fireplace read 12:01.

"My voice is terrible, but you know that….

"Just slip me on,
"I'll be your blanket"

Sain joined her in the song as she tried to not sob.
"Wherever, whatever, I'll be your coat…."

Mar tried not to have her gaze linger on the fire for too long, knowing she would see the ghost of another fire.