"When everything goes to hell, the people who stand by you without flinching - they are your family. "― Jim Butcher


Too quiet in here... Kuro thought, as she, Ryuto, and Gingka moved through the hallways of the hospital. None of the machines were beeping, and it was eerie.

Down the hall, Kuro heard a noise. Glancing over her shoulder, she made a few hand signs to Ryuto and Gingka, to which they nodded at, before turning down seperate hallways as Kuro walked down the one she was still in.

Kuro turned a corner, and came face to face with the barrel of a gun. She blinked several times, as if to make sure she saw what she did, before she sighed and looked beyond it with cold eyes.

"Alyssa." Kuro said, not dropping her own gun despite knowing that would be what she wanted.

"Drop it." Alyssa said.

"Drop what?" Kuro asked, "The subject of you turning into a bad guy and killing nearly fourty innocent people? Nope. It'll be on national headlines once I arrest you and bring you in."

"I meant the gun." Alyssa made a grab for it, and Kuro ducked back behind the corner. Alyssa stumbled forward, and Kuro knocked her in the back, smirking as she fell to the ground. She stepped up to her, but before she could react, Alyssa swept her legs around in a roundhouse kick, knocking Kuro to the ground.

Kuro cried out as she fell to the ground. Alyssa stood up, smirking at Kuro. She pulled her gun up, clicking off the safety.

"Say goodbye, Blackheart."

The sound of a gun going off echoed through the hospital.


"I'll cover for you if you don't mind killing him." Bao muttered, as he pulled the car to a screeching halt.

"I'm sure you would, but would Kuro?" Aguma asked as he and Bao jumped out of the car.

"I'll sort her out. I got the front, you cover the back." Bao said, drawing his gun as he ran for the front door, which had been kicked in.

It was completely dark through the house, and when Bao tried the light switch, nothing happened. The power had been cut.

Bao frowned, and reached into his jacket pocket, pulling his flashlight out and clicking it on.

After checking the first floor- nearly shooting Aguma in the process- both made their way to the stairs.

Before they had even reached the second floor landing, there was a gunshot, and Bao gasped as a bullet flew by his head, close enough to blow up some of his hair, and whipped around just in time to see Aguma jerk backwards and stumble, loosing his balance and falling down the stairs.

Bao growled, and whipped back around, drawing his gun up, and firing just at the same time another shot resounded through the house.


It was chaos at the hospital. Nurses and doctors were running around, up and down the hallways, and through patient rooms.

"You and your recklessness..." Mikaela grumbled as she wiped the blood off from around the gunshot wound in Kuro's shoulder, "You could've gotten yourself killed!"

Kuro rolled her eyes, wincing a little when Mikaela put the needle through her skin to begin sewing her up, "Careful! And what did you want, for Alyssa to kill everyone?"

Mikaela glared at her sister, "No. But I most certianly didn't want you to die either!"

Kuro huffed, and sulked in her seat, letting her sister stitch her shoulder. She frowned, "Mei- Mei must be wishing she could kill Alyssa ten times over right now."

At that moment, alarms blared, and both Mikaela and Kuro looked down the hallway as the doors down the hallway opened, and a gurney rushed down the hallway. The nurses obscured the person's face, but they still heard what the person was being brought in for.

"-Cardiac arrest..." The gurney rolled out of sight.

"Wonder if they'll survive." Mikaela murmured.

"Only 11 percent of people." Kuro replied, "Nef told me that once- Chris?! What are you doing here?!"

The blonde had rushed by so fast that Kuro had to do a double take. The blonde turned, looking more than a little panicked as he called in pants, "Nef... collapsed..." Chris was gone before Kuro or Kayla could react.

And then, Kyoya and Platina came rushing up.

Kuro glared at them, and, ignoring Mikaela telling her to sit down so she could finish with her bullet wound, she stood up and asked in a deathly cold voice, "What the fuck is going on?"


In the next two hours, the entire hallway became occupied with Lucas', Kuro's, and Gingka's teams.

Kuro ran over the list of- she hated to use this term for her friends- victims.

Wales, Sophie, and Chance- Wales was in with a concussion, Sophie with a broken arm, and Chance- Lucas had thrown his fist through the wall upon finding out- had been poisoned, and very close to dying.

Aguma and Christina- Kuro had been utterly shocked to find out that her husband had been critically shot, and Christina in nothing more than a state of shock and panic (but she had to admit she was proud of her brother for shooting Jigoku dead; the bastard deserved it).

Nefertiti- The poor woman couldn't get a break. The doctors had found out quick enough that it wasn't shock or a panic attack that she was going through, but more of anaphylactic shock. Something on the knife, or maybe even the chlorophorm that had been used to knock her out.

Even as Kuro watched Chris pace up and down the hallway, she couldn't help but only be concerned for Aguma. True, she was worried about Nefertiti, but she was only truely worrying about Aguma.

Kuro leaned her head back against the stone wall behind her and closed her eyes for a moment. She was tired, and she didn't think it would hurt for her to shut her eyes for a few moments...


Kuro was jerked awake by someone nudging her foot. She shot straight up, ignoring the wound in her shoulder burning with pain, and blinked multiple times before she saw who was smirking down at her.

"Aguma!" She exclaimed, pouncing on the muscular brunette, who grunted as several chuckles from Kuro's friends resounded down the hallway, "You're okay!"

"Mm, yeah, it wasn't as bad as they thought." Aguma wrapped an arm- the one not in the sling- around Kuro's waist, "Not to mention, according to Mikaela, you've been asleep for the last six hours."

Kuro scowled, and it was then that she noticed Bao was no where in the hallway.

"He's already cut out of here. With Christina." Gingka said, seeing Kuro's searching gaze, "And she's doing fine, before you ask."

Kuro smiled, looking relieved. She turned to Aguma, saying softly, "Go out to car, wait for me. I'll drive us home tonight, okay?"

Aguma kissed her on the cheek, "Sure thing."

Once he was gone, Kuro turned and walked down the hallway, to the stairwell, where she had seen Lucas disappear in just a few minutes before.


"Hey." Kuro said, softly.

Lucas looked up from where he had been staring at his phone. Kuro caught a glance of what he had been looking at- a picture of Wales, Sophie, and a young- well, younger- version of Chance.

"All of my family, injured. And I couldn't do a thing to stop it." Luke murmured, clicking his phone off and pocketing it, "I know Wales and Sophie will be okay, but what about Chance? He was poisoned! What if he doesn't survive?"

Kuro laid a hand on Lucas' arm, "Hey. Calm down. You don't need to worry."

Lucas looked at her, "Why?"

"Because he's got a tough ass family, that's why. You, Wales, and Sophie are all fighters to the bitter end." Kuro tapped Lucas on the forehead, "And if Chance inherited any of his parents and uncle's genes, he'll pull right through this." She smiled at him, "So don't worry."

Lucas smiled a little at Kuro, "Thanks."

Kuro chuckled and threw an arm around Luke's shoulder, "Anytime."