A/N: As always folks, thanks for your support! Couldn't keep doing this without you! Enjoy the chapter, and glad you like Black Star and Tsubaki!

Review Responses:

Diana Raven, here's more for you! Thanks for reviewing and glad you liked the thing with Black Star!

Anonymous Person, yeah, they are all just so unimpressed with Kid. Clark, Morgan and Cassie are all kind of shrouded in mystery, that's true, but hopefully you'll understand them a little bit better when we get to the end. We're more or less halfway there now. Enjoy, and thanks for the review!

AnimeOtaku9000, yeah, I've been dying to include Black Star, but I had to wait for reasons that will be clear pretty soon. Enjoy!

fanficlove2014, yep. Black Star certainly has a unique parenting style, although he and Ayame get along great. Glad you liked that line! We had a lot of fun coming up with it (me and my sister). And yes, Vayne could have reacted better, but I guess we can say he acted better off-screen. Hopefully. Poor Clark. Glad you liked the omake, and enjoy!

pokemon73, thanks! Glad you liked it and glad the characters are convincing. They are the most challenging and also the most fun part about writing this. Enjoy the chapter!

Em-Wing, that's definitely what this chapter was written to feel like. There will be…a few more calm moments before the end, but this is definitely one of the bigger ones. Glad you liked the interaction and the story! Thanks for the review and enjoy the new chapter!

Disclaimer: I don't own Soul Eater.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

The Warrior God's Declaration; Time for Training!

In any other school, a student going flying over the courtyard early in the morning might have been considered an exceptional event, but for the DWMA, it was just part of life. Students looked up to watch as the hapless combatant was flung bodily over their heads, vanishing somewhere over the horizon formed by the top of the school's infamous flight of stairs, then shrugged and went on with their business.

Ayame dusted her hands off from her place by the front door, looking over at the remainder of the group that had decided to pick a fight with her today. "Alright," she said. "Who's next?"

They scattered. Ayame sighed, picking her backpack up off the floor with one hand and slinging it over her back.

"Typical," she muttered under her breath, watching them go.

"You really don't have to do this," said Clark, looking over at her. "I appreciate it, but—."

"You're one of my friends," said Ayame, cutting him off. "I don't like people spreading rumors about my friends. Of course," she added, with an impatient glance over her shoulder, "if Rei would help, we could clear this up so much quicker."

Rei shrugged from where he was leaning against the wall, his hands in the pockets of his uniform jacket. "You seem like you've got it," he said. "Besides, it's too early in the morning for this."

Ayame rolled her eyes, running a hand through her hair. "I wanted Sasuke and got Shikamaru," she muttered under her breath, her voice low enough that only the people directly around her could hear it.

Clark breathed hard through his nose, the only sign that he was amused. Morgan frowned, looking up from Ayame's other side. "I don't understand the reference," she said.

"I do," said Clark.

"Weeb," said Vayne, nudging him playfully in the side. The comment, which might have gotten a rise out of Clark a few weeks ago, did nothing now except to make Clark reach up and rub at his side. When Clark walked off without a rejoinder, joining the stream of students entering the building, even Rei looked concerned. He straightened up, exchanging looks with the others.

"Come on," Clark said, from a few feet ahead of them. "We should get to class."

They followed, uncertain looks on their faces as they trailed along behind him.

Rei hung back at the rear of the group, his hands in his pockets as he watched Clark. Clark had been like this for the past week, ever since Ophelia's death. It was perfectly understandable, but he knew that Clark's obvious depression had been starting to worry some of the others, and, if he was being honest with himself, it was starting to worry him as well.

He didn't know what else to do though, other than give Clark time.

They were all still grieving in their own way.

He exhaled, following the group through the doors of Class Moonless Night. And there he paused, blinking at the teacher. Maka was seated behind her desk, her head propped up on one arm and her eyes lowered. Her face was a pale color that bordered on gray, and there were dark circles under her eyes as if she hadn't slept.

"Keep it down," she snapped at the group of students that walked in behind them, laughing loudly. A second later, the bell rang and she winced.

"Hey, Rei," Ayame said, lingering behind the others to match his pace so that she could whisper to him. "Your mom doesn't look so good."

Rei grimaced, watching her. Hungover, he thought, walking up the stairs to his seat. Definitely hungover.

He refrained from pointing that out, though, reasonably certain that even hungover, his mother still had decent aim. Instead, he made a vague gesture in Ayame's direction, a promise to tell her later, and took his seat.

From his other side, Vayne snickered, his eyes on the front of the room.

"Looks like they had fun last night," he said.

Her gradebook flew up through the stands, the spine striking Vayne squarely between the eyes. Rei winced in sympathy as Vayne went rigid, the book falling to the desk in front of him and leaving a red mark in its place.

She definitely still had good aim.

"Alright," Maka said, standing up and placing both her hands on the desk like she needed them to support her weight. She drew in a breath, as if gathering up her strength, and then launched into a quick speech. "We're going to be doing things a little differently today. The DWMA is primarily focused on the bond between weapon and meister, but in light of recent events, we feel that it's important for you to learn how to stand on your own, in case you find yourself separated from your partners. So today, you'll be working with some guest instructors. Go out to the courtyard and follow instructions from there."

She fell silent, her eyes on the students. There was a moment of uncomfortable silence in the classroom before people started getting up, making their ways back down to the door. Rei was one of the last people to leave, and he saw Maka slump forward out of the corner of his eye, leaning against her desk with a groan.

He hurried to catch up with Ayame and the others.

"I wonder who the guest instructors are," Cassie said, as they approached the courtyard.

Ayame let her eyes trail up to the ceiling, then blinked, eyes widening as she looked back at Rei. "You don't think…"

"Hey, Ayame! Rei! Great to see you again!"

"Hey!" said Ayame, waving. "It's Mom and Dad! Hi Dad!"

Black Star grinned at them as they emerged into the sunlight, standing next to Tsubaki. Tsubaki smiled, gesturing for the growing crowd of students to form a half-circle around them. Unlike his mother, neither of them seemed affected by their night out. Once the whole class was gathered in the courtyard, Black Star turned to face them, grinning.

"Alright kids, listen up!" he said. "I'm Black Star, DWMA's strongest warrior! You might have heard of me. This is my partner, Tsubaki. She's pretty awesome too—" He paused to glance back at her, giving her a quick smile which Tsubaki returned. "—We do Special Missions, which is a really boring way of saying we take on all the best jobs. So you know, we're basically experts at what we do, and today we're gonna try and whip you into shape. Any questions?" A few nascent murmurs started among the group at that, but before anyone could actually get a word in, Black Star clapped his hands, still grinning. "Great! Weapons with Tsubaki, meisters with me. Let's get this show on the road!"

Before anyone could say anything, he walked forward, making his way towards the steps that led back down into the city.

Rei looked from him to the others, feeling a little uncertain. His nerves weren't helped by the grin Ayame flashed him as she peeled away, walking towards her mother with Cassie trailing along behind her. Vayne clapped him on the shoulder and left as well, leaving him alone with Clark and Morgan.

The three of them exchanged glances, watching as Black Star began to walk down the steps, trailed by a handful of uncertain looking meisters. Clark still seemed unaffected by everything around him, his eyes on the middle distance and his hands in his pocket, and Morgan stared ahead coolly, drawing herself up to her full height before starting to walk. Neither of them seemed to share his concerns.

With a sigh, Rei followed.

Black Star led them out into the desert, far enough away from the city that the nearest landmark that Rei could see was the raised structure of the DWMA, dominating the horizon behind them. He drew to a grateful stop, loosening his tie and wiping the sweat off of his forehead with the back of his head. The sun was merciless out here, and he found himself wishing for the cool shade of the training forest, where he had seen Tsubaki and the weapons heading.

He stuffed his hands into his pockets, trying to ignore the searing heat. It would be alright, he told himself. It wasn't as if he hadn't trained here before.

Black Star clapped his hands to get their attention, turning to face them. "Today, I'm gonna teach you how to fight," he said, grinning. "But I'm not gonna stand here and talk about it. Fighting is the kind of thing you have to learn by doing, so we're gonna dive right into it. Last one standing wins. Any questions?"

Beside Rei, Clark adjusted his glasses with one hand, raising the other. He didn't look up at Black Star, keeping his eyes on the ground. Black Star pointed at him, drawing the attention of everyone else in the class.

"You!" he barked. "Four-eyes!"

There was a piece of paper clutched in his upraised hand, and Clark held it out to Black Star. "Um…I have a doctor's note."

"Oh, you do?" asked Black Star, walking over to him. The crowd of students parted, making way. "Let me see that."

Clark wordlessly handed the note over. Black Star snatched it out of Clark's hand, turning around and reading it quickly. "Hmm…let's see…madness…triggered by competition...yeah, yeah, whatever. You don't need this." Before Clark could react, he tore the note to shreds, the pieces scattering against the desert floor. Clark gaped at him, openmouthed, and Black Star dusted off his hands, shaking the last few shreds to the breeze and looking back over his shoulder at him.

Black Star grinned. "No excuses," he said.

"B-But—," Clark began, his glasses askew.

"I said, no excuses. You too, princess. Up and at 'em." Black Star's eyes moved away from Clark, landing on Morgan, who had taken her seat beside a rock, a frilly black parasol open above her to keep off the sun. She had her legs tucked beneath herself, a book across her lap. Morgan looked up at the sound of the voice, raising dark eyes to Black Star's. She watched him from under the curtain of her hair.

"No," she said.

"No?" Black Star asked.

"No," said Morgan, looking back at her book. "Not interested."

She flipped the page. The silence that followed was deep enough to hear a pin drop as, behind Black Star, the meisters of Class Moonless Night held their breath. Black Star watched Morgan for a long moment, as if taking her measure, then abruptly turned around, a grin on his face.

"Okay," he said.

"Okay?" Clark repeated, staring at Black Star.

"Yep," said Black Star, walking off. "Okay."

"Wait a minute!" said Clark. "How come she gets to skip out and I—?"

Clark broke off abruptly, interrupted by Black Star reaching out and grabbing him by the shoulder. The older man loomed over him, eyes narrowed, his forehead almost bumping into Clark's. "Because I said it was okay," he said. "Got that?"

Clark stared at him, wide-eyed, and nodded slowly. Black Star released him and stepped away, the grin back on his face. Behind him, Clark reached up and rubbed at his shoulder, watching Black Star with wide eyes.

The warrior walked back to the front of the group, looking over at them. "Anyone else have any issues?" he asked. No one spoke, each of them staring at him. "Great! Let's get started! Here's the catch though…" He paused, looking over each of them in turn. "I'm going to play too. So if you guys want to pass today's class, I suggest you get together and fight me seriously. Everyone understand? Good! Let's begin!"

Ayame drew to a stop at the end of her drill, looking up at the sky through the branches of the tree above her. It was cool in the training forest, the shade providing some measure of relief from the sun, but she didn't particularly feel relieved. She let her arms shift back into human form, half-listening as her mother walked around and lectured some of the others on how to best use their weapon form abilities. It was a lecture she had heard a thousand times, and at the moment, she didn't really want to hear it again.

"Ayame-chan?" Tsubaki asked, drawing her out of her thoughts. Her mother's voice was closer than Ayame thought it would be and she jumped, looking over her shoulder. Tsubaki smiled at her, but there was concern in her eyes. "Is something wrong?"

"No," Ayame said, shooting the sky one last look before turning back towards Tsubaki. "Just thinking."

"You aren't paying attention," Tsubaki pointed out.

Ayame shrugged. "I've learned it all before," she said. "I already know how to fight on my own, Mom."

"Then why do you look so worried?"

"I…" Ayame opened her mouth to say that she wasn't and promptly closed it again, looking away. She didn't know how to express it, the sudden tight knot in her chest. It felt wrong to be out here, training on her own. She'd done it before. She was good at it. But…"Do you think it's alright…?" she asked, not quite looking at her mother. "Leaving Rei alone with Dad like that?"

Tsubaki said nothing, but Ayame could feel her eyes on her. She grit her teeth, clenching her hands into fists. Ayame was terrible with feelings, both other people's and her own. "I mean, I just—we've been training, okay? And he's been working hard, but he's still—he's—."

"Ayame-chan…" Tsubaki's hand on hers was gentle, drawing Ayame slowly back towards her. Ayame looked back at her mother reluctantly, feeling the heat start to rise to her face, but Tsubaki only gave her a knowing smile. "Don't you trust your partner?"

"Of course I do," Ayame said. "I trust Rei—I just don't know—without me—." Her mind raced through a series of terrible images—seeing four missed calls from Rei's father on the eve of their first tournament final, seeing Rei on that bed in the dispensary, seeing that picture of Ophelia placed up at her memorial. The knot in her chest tightened, and for a moment, she couldn't breathe.

"Ayame-chan," said Tsubaki more firmly, squeezing Ayame's hand lightly. Ayame looked up at her, eyes wide. "Trust is the most important thing you can have between partners, both when you're fighting together, and when you're fighting alone." Tsubaki reached up, still smiling, and laid her hand lightly on Ayame's cheek, cupping the side of her face. Ayame stared at her, mouth open as if she didn't know what to say. "You're right. You're very good at being on your own, Ayame-chan. You've always been. I think that Rei-kun knows and sees that. And I also think that, in his own way, he's trying to catch up to you. He's not the type of person to want to stand next to you until he believes he can. Trust him."

She let her hand fall away from Ayame's cheek, letting it rest on her shoulder. Tsubaki smiled, tilting her head slightly to the side. "Okay?"

Ayame exhaled, then forced herself to unclench her fists, drawing in a deep breath. She looked past her mother at the group of weapons behind her, at Vayne and Cassie watching her now, Vayne's arms still transformed into blades and Cassie with her hand up and her mouth open like she had been speaking.

She looked back at her mother and nodded, bringing one of her hands up to her shoulder to cover Tsubaki's.

"Okay."

"Hey, come on! Step it up! Are you even trying?"

Rei scowled, raising his hands and striking at Black Star in quick succession. The blue-haired meister moved out of the way of his strikes effortlessly, a grin on his face as he continued to taunt Rei. It was like trying to strike at the air. The very loud, very powerful air.

"Come on, is this the best you can do?" Black Star asked, ducking beneath a swipe at his head. He pressed the palm of his hand into Rei's torso, the return strike forceful but not hard. It was surprisingly controlled, enough to drive Rei back but not enough to bruise or take him out of the fight. He grunted as he leaped back, landing on his feet and trying to circle around to find an opening.

"I'm not impressed, Rei," said Black Star, turning around in place and keeping his eyes on Rei. He was still grinning. Black Star raised his arm, calmly and effortlessly blocking Rei's strike towards his neck, then skipped backwards, avoiding Rei's sweep at his ankles. Rei growled in frustration. "A meister needs to take center stage! Can't let your weapon do all the work!" He caught Rei's knee with one hand as Rei attempted to knee him in the chest, holding him place and keeping him off-balance as he leaned in. His grin widened. "And you've got a pretty awesome weapon. I should know. I made her myself."

He kicked Rei in the side, hard enough to send him flying, then spun around quickly to deal with the students attacking him from behind. Rei landed hard on the desert floor, the impact jarring him as he skidded backwards against the packed earth, kicking up a cloud of dirt and sand. He grit his teeth tightly in frustration and pain, his fingers digging furrows in the dirt as he clenched his right hand into a fist.

"Don't you think I know that?!" Rei yelled, jumping to his feet. He ran towards Black Star, shrugging off his uniform jacket.

Rei tossed the jacket at Black Star as the older man turned back towards him, hoping that the distraction would buy him a little bit of time. He leaped to the side as soon as the jacket flew, obscuring Black Star's view, and came at him at an angle, slipping off his tie. He wrapped the fabric tight around both of his knuckles, forming a makeshift garrote as he ran at Black Star from the side, his eyes narrowed as he moved to slip his hands over Black Star's head.

Black Star held still until the last moment before Rei ran into him, then turned to face him, that grin appearing on his face again. He ducked beneath Rei's grab, then rose up sharply, suddenly inside Rei's range. Black Star swiped his hand backwards through the tie, forcing Rei to loosen his grip with one hand, then grabbed at Rei's shoulder with the other, pulling him closer to him.

"Good," Black Star said. "Just like that."

Then he kneed Rei in the chest hard, hard enough to make him see stars. Rei's eyes widened as the blow knocked the wind out of him, his vision blurring for a moment as he crashed back into the earth. He tried to sit up at the sound of shouting coming from the group of meisters, but Black Star's outstretched hand stopped him, the older man standing in front of him and looking back at the group.

"Nah, stay down," Black Star said, looking over his shoulder at him. "I've got this."

Rei remained where he sat, gasping for breath as Black Star charged forward, into the group. Now that his vision was clearing, he could see Clark standing in the center of a group of outraged meisters, another meister on the ground in front of him as he whirled, charging on a second. As Clark turned, he flung his glasses off of his face carelessly, letting them bounce across the dirt.

Black Star grabbed his wrist as Clark's hand sailed through the air, stopping the strike an inch before it connected. He tightened his grip, his soul wavelength crackling around him as he faced Clark, still grinning.

"Hey," he said, his wavelength expanding to fill the air around him. "Attacking your own teammates isn't cool, you know." Before Clark could react, Black Star shoved him backwards by his wrist with enough force to make him stumble. "If you have that much energy," Black Star said, "you can take on me."

Clark quickly righted himself, his eyes narrowed. Rei's vision wavered as Clark's wavelength flared up, his Soul Perception mingling with his normal vision so that he could see Clark's soul expanding, suffusing his body. Electricity arced around Clark's soul, lines of white tearing through his soul's usual light blue. The light changed him somehow, turning him into someone else, someone Rei had only glimpsed once before, in that spar in their first year when Clark had fought Ayame.

Before he could get a better look at Clark, he was already moving, darting forward. He ducked beneath Black Star's outstretched arm, aiming an elbow strike at the warrior's chest. Black Star moved back with the movement, keeping pace with Clark so that Clark's strike never actually connected with him, then glided effortlessly to the side, swinging his foot up and kicking at Clark from behind. His leg connected with the small of Clark's back, sending him pitching forward, but Clark quickly turned his fall into a roll, getting back up to his feet.

He launched himself at Black Star without pausing, his eyes narrowing and his lip pulled back in a snarl. Sweat and dust made his hair cling to his face, hanging just over his eyes. The white streaks in his wavelength grew and spread like electricity, overtaking the blue as he launched into a series of connected strikes, palm strikes transitioning into elbow strikes transitioning into knees as he tested Black Star's defenses, trying to find an opening. Black Star swatted his attacks aside, twisting and turning just out of reach, and with each missed attack, Rei could see Clark growing more frustrated, could see his wavelength becoming more savage, the jagged edges of that strange wavelength beating at the fringes of Rei's Soul Perception.

His heart beat faster, his eyes wide. Adrenaline surged through his veins, his fingers digging furrows into the dirt where he sat. He could hear that wavelength, a high-pitched keening noise that rang in the air. It wasn't music, wasn't a note. It was something disconnected and discordant, like white noise or radio static, like the jarring screech of microphone feedback. In contrast to Clark's, Black Star's wavelength continued to expand, beating out a steady rhythm, a controlled pulse that told Rei that he was consciously holding back. That even with Clark unleashing everything he had, going all out, Black Star was still holding back.

He wasn't sure which of them scared him more.

The halo of white that surrounded Clark's soul grew, swallowing the last bit of blue. Power flooded him at once as he leaped back, his eyes narrowing dangerously. Rei saw electricity arc from Clark's soul to his fingertips, pooling at the tips of his fingers as he turned to Black Star. A wave of killing intent emanated from Clark suddenly, so strong that he felt it almost as a physical breeze. His breath caught in his throat and he started to scramble to his feet, opening his mouth to call out.

A hand on his wrist stopped him, pulling him back. Rei looked over his shoulder, eyes still wide, and saw Morgan crouching beside him, holding onto him. She wasn't looking at him, her eyes on Black Star and Clark. Her grip tightened.

"Watch," she said. "Don't interfere."

Easy for her to say. Rei stared at Clark, feeling his mouth go dry as Clark charged forward, raising his hands, the bolts of lightning that connected his fingertips to his soul building up, getting ready to fire.

Black Star stood there for a moment, watching Clark. And then his soul wavelength exploded.

Or at least, Rei felt it as an explosion, a sudden burst of light and sound that left him blinded and his ears ringing. He blinked light out of his eyes and coughed sand out of his mouth, his eyes still on Black Star. The light cleared, revealing a soul wavelength that towered over the rest of them, strong enough and heavy enough to crush the earth beneath him, to form a crater around him from force of will alone. He charged forward, and that wavelength traveled into his hand, into five fingers as he formed a claw with his left hand, dodging Clark's first strike.

He thrust that claw at Clark's middle, the world stopping for an instant as they connected.

Then Black Star's wavelength shot out from his hand like a cannon, strong enough to throw Clark into the air, over their heads, and into the nearest rock formation. Clark struck the rock hard enough to crack it, dust rising in a cloud around him, and Black Star straightened up, shaking out his hand. Rei saw sparks of leftover energy leaving him as he shook out his fingers, and realized that even then, Black Star had been holding back.

Sound returned, but Rei hardly noticed because it was so silent. Clark slid to the ground beneath the rock, landing face down, and Black Star walked over to him through the crowd of stunned students, flipping him over. Clark was staring up at the sky, his eyes unfocused and mouth open, but as soon as he saw Black Star, his eyes widened. His wavelength cleared, the jagged white retreating from over light blue, and his eyes watered. He grit his teeth as he tried to sit up. Black Star stood over him, grabbing onto his hair and pulling his head up slightly so that he could look into his eyes.

He wasn't grinning anymore.

"I'm only going to say this once," Black Star said, "because I don't like it when I sound like Mifune. That thing inside of you—"—he paused to jab at Clark's chest with one thumb—"—it wants to be the strongest, and right now, you're letting it run the show. If you don't control it, it's going to control you. And no, running away from fights doesn't count. Because someday, there'll be a fight you can't run away from. And if you can't control it then, you're gonna lose everything. But…if you really can't help yourself, I'm gonna save you the trouble. The strongest person in the world is me. So if you get in that mood, don't bother with the small fry. Just come straight at me. I'll take you down every time."

The grin appeared on his face again as he released Clark's hair, letting him slide back down to the ground. He didn't move, staring up at the sky with wide eyes as Black Star stepped over him, turning back to the rest of the students.

"What?" he said. "Show's not over yet. If you're still standing, then get back in the game! I'm not finished with you!"

"I can't believe your mom cooked us lunch!" Cassie said as they walked to school the next day, carrying a pale pink bento box. Morgan walked beside her, carrying an identical box coated in black lacquer. She had her head down and a scowl on her face, her skin a painful looking red from their trip to the desert.

"I know, right?" said Ayame, grinning. "I told her she didn't have to—the cafeteria's awesome—but she said she was making up for lost time."

"And she's taking us shopping later too?" Cassie asked, smiling. "She really is the best!"

Rei walked beside her, wincing at the dull ache in his chest from yesterday's training session. He placed his hand over the bruise, rubbing at it lightly through his uniform and walking a little quicker to catch up to Ayame.

Clark broke off from the group, trailing along behind them. Rei paused, looking over his shoulder. Clark had been beaten up fairly badly yesterday, and bandages peeked out from under his shirt where they had been wound tightly around his chest. There was a purplish bruise spreading across the side of his cheek, and his glasses were held together at the nose by tape. One of his hands was clasped around the strap of his bag, the other holding on to a pale yellow bento.

He looked down at the ground, his expression distant. Rei opened his mouth to speak, but Vayne stopped him, extending a hand back towards him as he continued to watch Clark. Rei frowned, but said nothing, letting Vayne take the lead.

"Hey, Clark," Vayne said. "You okay?"

Clark stared down at the ground, looking miserable for a moment. Then, as if gathering his resolve, he drew in a deep breath, his shoulders heaving with the motion. He straightened up, tightening his grip on the strap of his messenger bag. "Yeah," he said, meeting their eyes. "I'm okay."

There was a pause, during which all of them watched him. Rei looked into his eyes, but all of the madness from yesterday was gone, replaced only by what looked like a profound regret and a new resolution. It was a little bit like the Clark he had known before, back before the horrible night of the Anniversary Ball. Clark stepped forward, rejoining the group, and Rei nodded in acknowledgment, continuing to walk.

They had almost made it to the top of the stairs before the jeering started. A boy appeared at the top of the stairs, his weapon already transformed and in hand, a wicked sword that seemed to extend backwards along his arm to the elbow. He looked older than they did, probably an upperclassman.

"You might have everyone else fooled, murderer, but you're not fooling me!" the boy said, his eyes on Clark. "Get out of this school!"

Ayame bristled from behind Rei, clenching her hands into fists and starting to stride up the stairs. Rei stopped her before she could pass him, extending a hand out to the side. He kept his eyes on the boy.

Ayame blinked, looking over at him with wide eyes from behind his outstretched arm. "Rei, what the heck?!" she asked, outraged. "You heard what he said!"

"Yeah," said Rei. "I heard." He glanced at her, then slowly turned his hand over so that he was extending it to her, palm up. At the top of the stairs, the other meister took a step back, his eyes widening.

Ayame stared, looking from him to his hand. "Are you sure?" she asked.

He nodded, not taking his eyes off of the other meister. "We're partners, right?"

There was a pause, a single moment in time that felt like a lifetime as Ayame watched him, staring at him as if she didn't believe that he was truly there. Then she reached for his hand.

"Right!" she said, a grin appearing on her face.

She transformed in a flash of light.

The staff meeting was held in the early morning, before the school even opened for the day. DWMA's faculty and assorted staff gathered in two half-circles around the desk in the middle of the Death Room, their eyes on Kid. From the second row back, Maka reached for Soul's hand, gripping it tightly. It had been her father, Mifune and Sid that had called this meeting, and she knew without even being told that it was because of that thing, that secret that they had all caught glimpses of but that had never been brought out into the open.

Kid's response was to turn towards Spirit expectantly, a frown on his face. "Well?" he asked. "I'm assuming you called us all here for a reason."

"Uh—of course, Shinigami-sama." Spirit coughed into his fist, straightening out his tie and glancing back at Mifune and Sid, as if asking them for support. Neither of them stepped forward to stand with him, so he moved towards Kid, holding out a file folder in both hands. "There—uh—there are some things you need to know," he said. "We apologize for keeping this from you, but I'm sure when you read that, you'll understand why."

Kid narrowed his eyes, his expression skeptical, but he took the folder from Spirit anyway, flipping through it. As he read, his eyes widened, and Maka craned her neck to try and catch a glimpse of what was on the page, wishing now more than ever that she was standing behind him. He flipped the folder back to the beginning, reading over everything one last time, the sound of rustling pages filling the room.

When he looked back up at Spirit, his expression was serious. "I'm not pleased that you went behind my back, but I understand why you had to," he said. "We'll begin preparations at on—."

"What, that's it?!" shouted Black Star loudly, interrupting him. Before Kid could react, Black Star strode forward, snatching the folder out of Kid's grasp. "You called us all here to give him a file?! What's in here anyway?"

"Black Star!" said Kid loudly, grabbing at the folder with both hands. "Give that back!"

Black Star placed a hand on Kid's face, keeping him at bay as he shook out the folder with the other, reading through it. "Let's see…what's this say…?" He read through it quickly, pausing as soon as he reached the end. He blinked, loosening his grip on Kid for a second.

"You get it?" Kid asked, straining to reach for the folder. "You get it, don't you? It's very important that you don't say any—mmph!"

"Shut up," said Black Star, shoving Kid away with a little more force. "Lemme read it again." He looked over the folder, moving his mouth with the words, then paused as he reached the end, looking up at the others with wide eyes. "Wait, that's what you're all worried about?!" his eyes on Spirit. Before anyone could respond, he threw back his head and started to laugh.

"BLACK STAR!" Kid said more emphatically. Black Star released him, letting the folder clatter to the ground. He continued to laugh, resting his hands on his waist.

"All this secrecy just because you're scared of the Morrigan?!" he asked, laughing again. "Man, you guys are pathetic! I'm here now. There's no way some bird lady is going to scare me!" He looked up at the Death Room's endless ceiling, raising his fist to it. "You hear me, Morrigan? Go ahead and attack! We're not afraid of you! Come on!"

An explosion sounded from outside, rattling the building. Black Star blinked, staring up at the ceiling with wide eyes. Somewhere in the distance, an alarm began to sound.

Kid slapped his hand to his face, gritting his teeth.

"Black…Star…" he said, the words coming out in a hiss.

Omake

"Hey, um…Mom?" Rei asked, lingering back behind the others as they left the classroom for the day. "I have a question."

"Yes, Rei?" Maka said, looking back at him.

"Well, it's about Soul Perception," said Rei, scratching at the back of his head as he glanced down at the ground. "I mean, I know about seeing souls and all that, but…um…do you hear them too? Or is that just…" He trailed off. Maka blinked, watching him, then giggled into her hand, reaching out and kissing him on the top of the head.

Rei tensed, quickly looking around to see if anyone saw as he pulled away from her, fixing his hair. "What was that for?!"

"Ask your father," Maka said, heading for the door.