Thank you everyone for staying with me this long, and for those new faces. We're finally getting into the big action and that part everyone's been waiting for.

So, anyone wonder why we spent several chapters in flashback? Or, well, the story-reason? You're about to find out~

As always, if you have any ideas, don't be afraid to share them. I never would have gotten this far without you all. Your words and praise help inspire me to keep going. Thank you so much. *bows*

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Spirit stood over the cot that held his daughter, curled up as small as she could and sheltered in the embrace of her Weapon. The redhead didn't have the levity to worry about a 'boy next to his precious baby girl'. All he saw was the teen that had taken a blow for his daughter, who had protected him in turn, even at the potential loss of her legs. Blair was in cat form and curled up tightly against the small of Maka's back. She opened a single golden eye to look at him, then went back to resting.

Maka shivered and pushed impossibly closer to Soul. Spirit took off his jacket and laid it over the two sleeping teens, then turned to the hospital bed. BlackStar, by dint of unconscious choice or necessity of the narrow berth, lay nearly sprawled across Kid's limp form, apparently protective even in sleep. Not, he thought, unreminiscent of Maka and Soul behind him. The actions of a true Weapon-Meister pair.

The redheaded weapon retreated to the far side of the room so he could watch over them all, where he could watch his daughter sleep, and keep an eye on her from as close as he she would allow him to be. ...Where Maka wouldn't see him immediately if and when she woke up. He leaned his head back against the wall with a sigh, looking longingly at the vacant chair that had probably been where the other Scythe Weapon had held his own vigil before giving in to the need for sleep.

Spirit had always known, in his mind, that they were turning children into soldiers. He hadn't minded so much when he'd been one of those children, but it was different now that he had a child of his own going through the same thing. There was no worse fate for a parent than being forced to bury their child. He had known that, too. But all of the recent events had brought everything so much closer to the surface. He had always believed in Maka, she had her mother's strength, but to see her crying over the death of a friend and not be allowed to comfort her... To see Shinigami contemplating the death of another child, one he had helped raise himself...

It was one thing to turn their willing students into solders, it was another thing entirely to make war on children. He ran a hand through his hair and stared up at the ceiling, wondering what the ultimate verdict would be now that he'd thrown in his two cents. Would BlackStar be given his freedom? ...Or would Spirit be staging a rebellion from the place that had ultimately been his home since he was a child himself?


"We will take your words into consideration. Now please leave us be so we may discuss things."

Blair gave them a all a searing look, but Spirit thought it might have affected him more than the others, before she turned-tail and walked out with all the dignity a cat possessed, even injured and slightly limping. He was honestly surprised she didn't lock them all in with another barrier as she went.

There was breath of relief when it was just Death Scythes and a few staff members again, "Now, vote on the issue of Patty Thompson."

For the first time since these cluster-fuck proceedings had started, Spirit spoke up with something other than 'I abstain': "She's a student. She has always abided by the rules. She received permission for her pet. There is no decision to be made here. Lord Death?"

The other Death Scythes stared at him in speechless surprise. For weeks now, the votes had been unbroken down the middle on the matter of BlackStar, and he was choosing to throw around his considerably-weighted opinion about Patty Thompson?

The reaper paused, looking thoughtful, then nodded, "It's decided, then~! Patty will remain a student and shall be trained."

Spirit let out a relieved breath. And with luck, neither her sister nor Meister will ever know how close she came to death this night.

"Then we are once again brought back to the matter at hand that first called upon us all. Since Death Scythe is now apparently willing to share his estimable opinion, I once again call for a vote on the matter of the student BlackStar, and the question of his guilt in the death of his weapon."

Spirit could almost hear the groans everyone didn't dare voice out loud. But there was enough eye-rolling to make a watcher dizzy. There was a despairing, aggravated quality as once again the Death Scythes went around giving their votes.

"Guilty."

"Not guilty."

Around they went, and once again they were split cleanly down the middle with Spirit the only one left. Several were leaned back, certain he was about to give the same answer as all the previous times, while some others leaned forward in anticipation.

"Lord Death."

"Yes?"

"I am not able to give my vote at this time." no one bothered to silence their groans that time, "I fear that I'm far too biased to look at the situation with neutral eyes." Silence answered his first attempt at some sort of explanation since the proceedings had begun.

"How so?"

"That boy is no older than my daughter. More over, the two are friends, and just this past night it is through BlackStar and Kid's efforts that Maka is alive right now. Those factors play large roles in my inability to view this properly."

Always knowing when there were things left unsaid by his Weapons, Shinigami prodded, "And?"

"And... Lord Death, I would speak to you of a private matter."

"Approach."

The others trailed away, giving them privacy, and Spirit stepped closer, staring up into the dark pits that were Death's eyes. He didn't flinch. He, more than any other, knew the thoughts and emotions behind that mask. "Shinigami."

"Spirit."

"I will not be the one to kill that boy. And should the other Death Scythes have voted to have him executed, the duty would have fallen to me. I have trusted you to put a stop to this, but I see now that you can't, and I see why. You're having the same problem that I am: You're far too involved to be neutral, and you were hoping we would decide for you. We both -we all- know what lies beneath the school, but neither Kid or BlackStar are that. Even if you thought it necessary, you regret that action, and I won't be part of another regret like that.

"If BlackStar is ordered executed, you may consider it my resignation. I will not kill kids, and I will not make war on children. BlackStar had it right when he turned away from the witch Angela, some lines are not meant to be crossed, and I won't cross this one."

The God of Death had not wielded him for years without learning his Weapon's thought process. Spirit had said, as good as in words, that not only would he leave, he'd take Maka, and quite possibly even BlackStar himself and anyone else that wanted to go, with him.

"This is not something we can decide for you, it's not something we have the right to decide for you. It's your right, your obligation -just as it was all those years ago- and it's not right for you to try and lay it at your Weapons' feet. You need to decide, one way or the other, because there are other problems looming on the horizon. That's all I had to say, Lord Death. I will leave you to your thoughts and await your decision." Spirit straightened up, feet together, and bowed, then turned on his heel and left, feeling the weight of the others' eyes upon him.

Blair waited for him just outside the Death Room, "They are protected. None but you, that insane doctor, and I can get to them. We'll have warning." He nodded and followed her to the room where his daughter slept.


"...P-Papa?"

Spirit was straightened up in an instant and by his little girl's side the next, "Hey, Sweetheart."

Maka yawned, "What are you doing here?"

He took a the time to savor the moment, for ones like it were so rare. Those few minutes when Maka first woke up, when she was sleepy still and not quite aware, before her forest green eyes hardened to unforgiving emerald. ...Before she remembered that she hated him. "Just watching over my little angel."

Maka let him reach forward and push her hair out of her face, even gracing him with a smile, before burrowing back into the warmth between her Weapon and make-shift blanket. Then her eyes snapped open and she sat straight up.

"Argh! Maka! Fuck!"

Between Maka using his stomach to push herself upright and Blair -sharp claws extended- sliding against his side at the absence of the young blonde, Soul could probably count that as one of his worst wake-up calls ever. Maka snatched her hand back, holding it in front of her mouth, "Sorry! Oh, Soul, I'm really sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you. ...Worse."

The white-haired teen waved off her apology with a groan, "No, no, it's fine. I mean, it's not like you ran over my foot no less than six times yesterday, or rammed those hellish wheels back into my shins or anything. Really, I should have expected the assaults to keep on rising. I'm just thankful you skipped damaging the really important bits."

She rolled her eyes, "The day is young and I've been on a roll. Don't count me out yet."

Soul looked down at his side, "And feel free to stop using me as a pin-cushion any time, really."

Blair, with all the dignity she could muster at being frightened awake, detached herself and jumped to the foot of the bed.

"Will you two please shut up? I'm trying to sleep here."

Maka jerked and looked around, "Oh, sorry, Liz, did we wake you?"

"Gee, no, I just thought 'you know what sounds good? Shouting for silence in a quiet room'."

"She already said sorry." Soul snapped.

Liz sighed and sat up, "Yeah. You think I'd be used to noise by now. Hey, are Patty and her cat back yet?"

"They are now." Everyone looked over at the doorway where Patty was nearly asleep on her feet, hugging Pushi -now dressed- by the arm. She made her way to Liz's cot and laid down with the cat-boy. The tabby-striped brunette curled up at her feet and Patty sleepily hugged her sister's leg, using it as a pillow.

Said sister just rolled her eyes and laid on her stomach so she could still talk to the others, "So how did the check-up go?'

Stein looked up and adjusted the bolt in his head, "She has ears and the tail, and claws. She may show other feline characteristics, such as the need to clean or groom. But otherwise, she's perfectly healthy." he shared a look with Spirit and the redhead nodded. Perfectly healthy for a young witch.

Liz snorted, "Patty, cleaning? That's something I'll need to see to believe." She hesitated for a moment, then motioned with her head to the two lying on the berth, "What about them?"

Stein pulled out a pack of cigarettes, lighting up two and then handing Spirit one, "I checked Kid first thing. I haven't had the chance to see to BlackStar yet, but I will when they wake up in the morning."

Maka glanced over at them, "...Are you sure they will wake up in the morning? Isn't it unnatural for them to have slept so much as it is?"

Liz looked at them, then back at Maka, "I don't think so. I mean, it's normal, right?" She turned to Stein for the answer to that last bit.

The stitched man took a puff from his cigarette, "From what I've been told about them, I estimate that they'll wake up then, yes."

Green eyes glanced between them in confusion, "I don't understand. What am I missing?"

Liz smacked her head, "I forgot it wasn't common knowledge. When you and Soul first really Resonated, did you have strange dreams that night. Like, flashes about meeting?"

The two looked at each other then back at her and nodded, "What about it?"

"Patty and I got this lecture when we first arrived before they let Kid try wielding us. You know how the first Weapon or Meister you meet is generally here? I mean, neither of you two ever met anyone like you before coming here, right?" she glanced at Spirit, "...Parents notwithstanding."

"Yeah...?"

"So normally it isn't even an issue. If you can't resonate with someone, they get burned, move on to another partner, etcetera. But when a Weapon and Meister know each other for a long time before ever resonating, it can cause these... blackouts. When normal partners resonate their souls, it's a... binding... thing." she waved her hand around vaguely, "You know what I mean: it's hard to put into words. Anyway, when they sleep and dream, they'll resonate subconsciously, and see when they met and, depending how long they've known each other, maybe another important moment or two before reliving that moment of resonance."

Soul was the one who spoke up, "So then what's wrong with them?"

"I'm getting to that. When two people know each other for a long time before that resonance, they remember nearly everything."

"Like... everything-everything?"

"What part of 'everything' did you find confusing, exactly? Yes, 'everything-everything'. Or at least all the important bits, the parts that brought them... closer. Closer to each other, and closer to that first resonance. Some experience it all the way up to that, but most of them only get those flashes right up until the... I forget exactly what it was called."

Stein cut in, "Precipice Moment."

Liz nodded, "Yeah, that. It's basically the first time they both thought 'I need you'. For normal partners, that's the time when the first resonance happens. For casual acquaintances and friends, too, but with a relationship as close as those two have... Well, Professor Stein already said he thinks they'll wake up in the morning."

Maka nodded while Soul still looked to be taking it in, "How did you come to know about this?"

"No one was really sure what exactly would happen when Kid resonated with me and Patty. We'd known each other our whole lives, of course, and we'd wielded each other before, but no one was quite certain what would happen with Kid thrown into the equation. If he'd live out our lives with both of us until the 'Precipice Moment' or if it would be the short flashes most have, or even if he'd only have the flashes while Patty and I relived our whole lives. So we all got sat down and given the lecture."

"So there's nothing we can do except wait?"

"That's what I've heard."

The children huffed, and Stein drew Spirit away, "Lord Death has a message for you. He says he'll make his decision by morning."

Spirit tensed, snuffing out the butt of his cigarette on the floor with no concern whatsoever for the flooring. He looked over at the children being distracted by Blair, Liz running her fingers through her sister's hair, Maka leaned against Soul's shoulder for support, and all of them glancing toward Kid and BlackStar. "What are we going to do, Stein?" How are we going to protect them?

The gray-haired Meister breathed out a cloud of nicotine smoke, "Same as them: We wait." And, if necessary, we fight.

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