Beep! Beep! Beep!

I pressed the snooze button and quietly jumped out of bed. It was only 5 a.m. but the sky was still dark with just highlights of sunlight gleaming through. Stripping out of my pajamas, I slipped on a pair of dark jeans and light jacket. I hung my gun in its case and pulled my t-shirt over it. After fixing my hair in a high ponytail, I rushed downstairs.

As I tiptoed over the stairs, large creaks squeaked out. Funny how I've walked up and down this staircase at least a dozen times and it's never made a peep. And the one time I'm trying to do something quietly, it starts to groan under my feet.

I ran across the room quietly then froze to listen for any extra noises. When it was clear, I wrapped my hand around the cold brass doorknob. So far so good; I turned the doorknob and I could see the outside of the building when…

"What do you think you're doing?"

Startled, I jumped back and whipped out my gun, pointing it at the suspect. Only to see Ikuto in the light with his hands up by his head. I put the gun back in its holster, and stared at my intruder. His hair was dripping wet like he had just taken a shower. Looking down, confirmed my suspicions as well as embarrassed me to the fact that he hadn't been wearing a shirt. Yes, no shirt, water droplets on his toned chest, the fact that he was in his dark blue boxers, and a pale pink towel wrapped around his neck. Why hadn't I noticed that before? Because you were too busy being shocked.

As I had a semi-internal battle with my thoughts, I didn't notice Ikuto take a step closer to me.

"Again, what do you think you're doing? And can I put my hands down?"

I answered the latter question with a shrug.

"I'm leaving."

"Where to?"

He doesn't need to know where I'm going. It shouldn't matter to him. He's not my boss.

"No where."

Ikuto chuckled and stepped closer to me. His dark eyes focused right on mine. I could smell the soap he used and feel his breath on my cheek. A little water droplet from his hair fell on my neck.

Why is he doing this?

"And where's no where?"

"Not here," I answered tightly before leaving.

Once I was outside, I leaned on the blue wooden door to regain my composure. He had been too close to comfort. Too close for anything relaxing. I took in a deep breath before heading off.

The air was cold, which made me glorify the thankful thought of bringing a jacket. The streets surprisingly were busy even when it was 5 o'clock in the morning. My heart wanted to get as far as possible from the hotel. To be free, even for those 15 minutes. But common sense held me back, saying it would be wiser to stick close in case I got lost.

I chose a small shop with a dark raspberry colored roof. The windows were made of light woodwork and the door had the same intricate designs. Flowers gave the whole shop a sense of warmth and home. Inside the shop was as homey as it looked outside. The smell of fresh chocolate chip cookies drifted around the shop reminding anyone of a time at their grandmother's house or your mother's kitchen.

Just as I was about to check out some things, a hand grabbed my shoulder. I froze still and resisted the urge to scream. Calmly I turned around to see a mass of blonde hair and those striking red eyes.

"Tadase?"

"Sorry if I scared you," he replied taking his hand off my shoulder. "I just thought that maybe it could be you and if not I'd be yelled at in French by some other woman."

"Guess you lucked out, huh?" I said taking a small pause between my laugh.

"Yeah. So what're you up to?"

"Hmmm? Oh I was just looking for souvenirs to give to my family and friends."

"You came to the right place, accident or not."

Without another word, he led me to a small area filled with anything anyone would ever have wanted when they were kids…or adults. Chests filled with jewels and beads. Bags lined up in a corner. Shelves filled with little trinkets like Hello Kitty plushies and other cartoon related things. Putting all the cute objects aside, all the latest trends were spread out in the middle of the floor.

"We can probably finish your souvenir shopping in one go. How many people?"

"There's Ami, Noelle, Nagi, Utau and Rima. Then again I should probably add my co-workers too. So add Kukai and Kain."

"That's fairly easy. Let's start out with the girls."

Later

By the time I had left the store, I'd bought Utau, Rima, and Yaya some of the latest fashions in clothes, shoes, and bags. For Ami I had picked out an emerald green half-sleeve tunic, with a pair of ripped jeans and brown boots. I'd also gotten them a few accessories. For Kain, I'd gotten him a pair of new sunglasses since I'd accidentally sat on his last night. And for Kukai, Tadase had picked out a navy sweater with some sports team on it. On a last minute whim, I had gotten something for Ikuto too. It was a cigarette lighter in the shape of a cute bunny. It was a pretty lame present.

I really don't know why I got anything for him; I probably won't even give it to him. Sighing, I flicked open and closed the head of the lighter.

"You okay?"

Snapping out of my trance, I turned to Tadase and gave him a smile.

"Yeah, I was just thinking."

He stared at the lighter.

"You know smoking isn't healthy for you?"

"I've told him before, but he refuses to listen. Said it made him look cooler."

"Him? Who's him?"

"My b-

Catching, myself, I coughed and started over miserably.

"My best friend's friend."

"Ah."

We walked a little bit farther until I bid him a goodbye and grabbed my bags from his grasp; I made my way over to the hotel. Stashing the lighter deep into the contents of the bag, I reached for the door and walked in. Just as soon as I came in, I wanted to go back out. For there was Ikuto leaning on the counter biting into an apple. He had thankfully put some clothes on since our previous meeting.

"How was 'Nowhere'?"

"Just fine."

"Get ready to leave."

"Where to?" I asked turning around to face him since he'd started talking to me.

"The house Taiyo and Tsuki mentioned."

Ikuto POV

When I was sure Amu was out of ear shot, I threw my apple against the wall. Cursing, I walked over and threw it into the trash. No matter what I did, or how I tried to reason it, I couldn't get her out of my head. What had happened this morning was a careless mistake. I had to stop getting involved with her. It was a promise and a deal. Both that let me keep this job and both that got me into this trouble.

"She knows more than you think she knows," said Kukai walking in.

I looked up and sighed.

"I was only trying to protect her."

"I know. But you protecting her is what got you into this mess in the first place. Besides, I'm sure she doesn't need protection. She's spent 2 years on the streets fighting for herself. And has seen more gore than any person her age should've been seeing."

"I only made the deal because I didn't think I'd ever see her again."

"But you did. She broke your hardened shell and you fell in love with her."

"I- Why am I even talking about this? Come on, tell the rest of them to hurry up," I said turning away completely.

Chuckling, Kukai walked upstairs and yelled at them to get down.

x

I wanted to say I wasn't surprised when I got to Kyou's address, but I actually was. The house was as large as a mansion, maybe even bigger. It reminded me of castle. The gardens outside were well kept, meaning someone was out here taking care of everything. A house keeper or family friend.

I motioned the group to the door and knocked. After several tries of this and no answer, I was forced to switch to a more offensive tactic.

"Listen up; I'm going to give you to the count of five to open this door. If not, I'll be forced to break it down!"

Once again, there was no answer, and I was starting to believe no one actually lived here.

"1."

"2."

"3."

"4."

"5."

Stepping back, I ran straight and kicked the door with the bottom of my foot. The door clicked and swung open on a semi-broken hinge. I pulled out my gun and walked into the dark house. The light from the sky did no help to add some brightness to the room leaving us completely blind. I motioned them to follow me in.

As I felt around the wall for a light switch a flame lit up in the corner behind me. Turning around, I saw Amu with a lighter in her hand walking towards the bookshelf. In no time, the light illuminated the room letting me get a better inspection of the place. It wasn't as grand as it had looked outside.

Shattered glass covered the floor along with anything you could possibly imagine. Books, pillows, scattered papers and magazines, knocked over lamps, and crooked couches. It was obvious that someone had tried to break in. Continuing my inspection, I noticed Amu attempting to pick up a doll.

"Don't," I whispered from behind her.

She froze then slowly turned around to face me. Her golden eyes were wide with sorrow and from what I could notice, a speck of anger.

"I have to…it's Noelle's doll."

What happened next was complete curiosity. It had nothing to do with my feelings toward Amu. I crouched down next to her and grabbed the doll from her hands, our fingers brushing. Trying not to make it noticeable, she moved over just a bit. But I noticed, and cursed at myself.

Taking my focus off her, I began to examine the doll. It was a porcelain type of doll with a dark red dress with white trimmings. It had a similar style hat that kept the wild mass of curly blonde hair under control. One of its black boots were missing. Looking closer, I saw that on the sole of the foot it said 'Noelle' in the messy scrawl of a 4 year old.

We both got up at the same time.

"I thought Noelle was found in a different shack."

I stared at her with the same puzzled expression.

"She was."

She was about to open her mouth to speak when sirens unexpectedly erupted from outside the building.

"The cops," grumbled Kain.

"The cops? Why are the cops here?" asked Amu taking a step closer to the door.

"We should just talk to them and see what they want," said Kukai.

"Attention! Come out with your hands up."

"We don't have to listen to them do we? You guys are cops too," questioned Amu.

I didn't move. My eyes were focused on the cars outside. They shouldn't even be here. I'd told my parents that I was coming to France. That alone should've already explained to people I was coming. Everyone here mainly knew that I was a negotiator and cop. The metros are under supervision. And I had told almost every police station, that we'd be investigating the Kyou case. Tsukasa had taken care of the rest. So why were they here?

I took a step forward and then something black caught my eye. Turning, I saw it now. The black camera in the corner of the room.

"Fuck," I hissed storming towards the camera.

I pulled out a chair and using a pocket knife, cut the wires attached to the camera.

"What is that?" asked Kain.

"A camera."

Sharing my sentiments on the matter, he also cursed.

From outside they was a shuffle of footsteps; when I looked out, I saw the cops had surrounded the house. They were just a couple of feet away.

"Drop the camera and your weapons!"

I stared at the one closest to us. He had orange brown hair with dark green eyes. He and his team were definitely Japanese. But besides the physical characteristics, there was something familiar about him. It wasn't the color of his hair or eyes. It was the shape of his face. It seemed all too familiar to me.

A frown played across his face and he whipped out a gun.

"Drop them!" he shouted.

I looked back at them and nodded. On my signal, Amu and the rest of them gently placed their guns to floor. From the corner of my eyes, I noticed Amu take a step closer to the doll. I stared back at the man.

Where had I seen him before? At a store? At work? Maybe it had been a case? Looking back I noticed something off about him. His stance wasn't right. As a cop you're taught to stand with your legs apart, balancing your weight equally allowing a better target. His feet were together, not to mention he was slouching a little bit. He couldn't be a real cop. Then it hit me. The reason he was so familiar. TaeYang Kwon, he had been working with Kyou for over 15 years. I had seen his name in one of the papers about Kyou.

When he saw the light of recognition in my eyes, he smiled. A smile so sinister, it made me want to shudder.

"It's too late. Game over," he mouthed.

Realizing what he meant, I turned around quickly and pulled a spare gun out of my holster.

"Run!" I shouted.

The minute I gave the warning, TaeYang nodded. His men ran into the house and bullets flew. For some sort of cover, I knelt behind the one of the couches. Meanwhile, I saw Kain and Kukai go behind the other couch. Where was Amu?

In the midst of my thoughts, a pastel blue vase near me shattered into hundreds of crystal fragments. I took a shot back, getting one of his workers in shoulder before ducking back behind the couch. I continued looking for her. What if she had been shot? She wasn't that inexperienced, but what if her gun had malfunctioned or something? Catching a pink wisp of hair, I turned around slightly and saw Amu near the staircase. The doll along with a back up gun was in hand. She looked around, then turned around and started to go up the stairs. Behind her, a man snuck up on her; his gun aimed directly at her.

I was about to get up, when another bullet whizzed right past my shoulder. Shooting back, I saw that Amu had noticed the man behind him and aimed her gun at him. The man flinched right at the moment she pulled the trigger. But no bullet flew out leaving her petrified and the man smirking. The man aimed once more, and just as he was about to shoot, I ran and shot him right in the leg. I kicked the gun out of his hand.

"Where are you going?"

"There's something I need to check!" she shouted before running back up.

She had better be careful.

Amu POV

I tucked the gun back into my holster and ran up the faded wooden stairs. The walls were pushed into close together, leaving me to hold onto the wall for some sort of support. As I walked up the stairs, my foot wouldn't move and I fell flat on my face. Looking down, I saw my foot had broken through the weak wood. Groaning, I pulled my foot out and continued up.

The hall was narrow but with just a couple rooms. There were hardly any windows leaving it dark but with just rays of sun hitting the room at awkward angles. I held the doll closer to my chest as I ventured through the hall. The first two rooms were close to bare. There were three single beds in each one. I emptied the pillowcases first and then checked under each of the mattresses. It was completely clean. There were only two rooms left now.

Every once in a while the walls shook, reminding me that they were still fighting downstairs. I hurried into the third room. There was only one bed now but unlike the first two, it was a complete mess. The desk in the corner of the room had papers piled up messily covering the surface as well as the floor around it. The blinds as well as the window were broken. This must've been his room.

I frantically began searching through the room; first thing to check was the desk. Digging through the pile, all I found were stacks and stacks of bills that had clearly not been paid off. For a moment I thought about bringing them with me, but I could always come back and get them later. Shoving the bills off, I uncovered a bundle of letters. I stuck them into my bag while my heart did a little happy dance. I'd see what the letters said once we got back into the taxi.

Savagely, I dug through the heaps of clothes lying on the floor. All I found underneath it was a dirty used tissue and a package of condoms. I wrinkled my nose in disgust not wanting to know what either of those items served its wanted purpose. I turned my attention to the only other thing left to check in the room – the bed. I pulled out the mattress and checked underneath it. It was empty, along with the pillow cases and under the bed. I sighed; I hadn't found as much as I had hoped to find. The only good piece of evidence I had gathered were the letters. With my held low, I was just about to walk up when an idea struck my mind. Kyou was a mastermind criminal. He was notorious for leaving his tracks covered. And if I was right, then I might be able to find something right in here.

I pulled out my pocket knife and dragged the sharp edge over the bouncy cotton of the mattress. It split open, leaving an opening of springs and cotton. I combed through the cotton with my fingers until I felt something cool and hard. Grinning, I pulled out a leather bound journal. I quickly stuffed it into my bag, knowing I probably crushed the letters and ran into the last room.

Walking in, this room just broke my heart. On the door, which had splinters sticking out of it, there was a little piece of paper that said 'Noelle's Room'. It was such a small room; the bed taking up more than half of the offered space. There was a small window with a tattered pink curtain hanging there with as much pride as it could muster. Dolls were here and there – most of them residing on the corner of the bed. And on the floor was a small circle rug. Then I took a closer look.

The walls had dents. In the corner of the room was a medium sized pile of broken objects. The wall had nail marks embedded into them. All of this was evidence of some sort of abuse. I slowly walked over to her dresser and pulled open the wooden knob. Inside, there were tons of drawings and small notes preserving nothing but childhood and innocence. Knowing someone had actually beaten her in this room made me want to shoot that bastard right in the head.

I placed the doll on the bed so I could take a closer look at the notes.

December 2.

I wants him too disapeer…

Even though something so serious had happened in this room, I couldn't help it when a soft smile spread across my face when I noticed her spelling. I grabbed all the notes and a couple pictures she had drawn and gently placed them inside the leather journal. I wandered over to her bed and did what I had done to the others. Only this time, I didn't bother to rip open her mattress; I was sure she wasn't that conniving to pull off a stunt like that.

If I was a little girl, where would I hide my most important secrets? I thought back for a moment – back to when I was 6.

Flashback

I sat in the car as still and as quietly as I could while Mama asked me about my day. It was a regular routine she did, but it seemed like it was going to go on forever. She brought the car to a slowed halt as she approached the stop light before turning around to face me.

"Something the matter, Amu?"

I looked into her light brown, almost gold eyes and shook my head. She looked at me with a smile then turned back around.

"So then why are you so happy?"

"Huh? I'm not happy!" I argued.

"Are you sure?" she asked pulling into the driveway.

I studied the back of her seat for a minute before answering.

"Nothing happened."

"Okay, now go change out of your school clothes and then we can have lunch."

Smiling, I raced out of the car and rushed upstairs into my room. I slammed the door shut behind me and listened to make sure Mama hadn't followed me upstairs. When the coast of was clear, and walked over to my bed and pulled out a small silver box from under it. I gently opened the box and placed it on my bed. Then I took out the cool object from my pocket.

I held the rock up into the sunlight, the blue sparkling just like the ocean and the yellow just like the sun. My most precious secret: the rock he gave me. Smiling, I placed the rock right on top of the couple dozen pictures then closed the lid. I slid the box right under my bed before heading downstairs.

My most precious rock.

End of Flashback

My precious secret was hidden under my bed. So maybe, if she was like me – then…

I went down to the floor and looked under the bed. And there it was a small pale pink box. I pulled it out and just stared at it. I wouldn't open it I decided. This was the memory of a small girl, and just like my rock, no matter how insignificant it may seem to others, it holds a special value.

Just as I was placing it into my bag, I heard a shuffle of footsteps from the stairs. Freezing, I stuffed it into my bag, and closed my hand over the handle of my gun. My heart pounded in my chest; who won downstairs? Were the others dead? But whoever it was, they were looking for me.

The footsteps approached Noelle's room then came to halt. I clamped my hand over the gun's handle harder, feeling the strain from my fingers. When a head came into view, I sighed a breath of relief. Emerald green eyes met mine before frowning.

"Hurry up!" he exclaimed. "We've pretty much beat them to a pulp."

When I didn't move, he ran to me and grabbed my arm.

"We've got to go. Ikuto's pretty alerted about something."

"What's going on?"

"I don't know. During the gunfight, TaeYang must've said something to startle Ikuto. Now he's telling me that we have to get the hell out of here."

"Okay, just let me get-

"No time! Let's go!"

He pulled me off the floor and broke off into a run. As he raced down the stairs, I managed to stumble a few times, and I almost fell right into the hole I had made earlier.

Ikuto POV

TaeYang's group was sitting on the grass outside mending their wounds, while the notorious leader just stood there, leaning on a tree. But my main concern was Amu. Was she okay? Is she injured? I cursed, even though I had promised myself not to worry about her anymore, I couldn't help the pang of relief in my heart when Kukai pulled her out of the house.

The pair walked up to me and Kain. Kukai immediately sat down on the floor while Amu lingered a bit; she looked like she was thinking about something.

"Did you find anything upstairs?" I asked.

Startled, she looked at me then kind of smiled.

"Yeah. There were four rooms in total upstairs. The first two had a few beds but they were close to bare. The third room must've been Kyou's. On his desk were piles of unpaid bills, but I managed to find some letters and a leather bound journal."

"We can take a look at those once we're back at the hotel."

"And, the last room was definitely Noelle's room. I found a few notes and drawings. There was also a box I found. The room had evident signs of abuse and-

She froze. Her eyes wide in shock.

"What's wrong?" asked Kain.

"The doll. I forgot the doll."

She quickly turned around and was about to run to the house when I grabbed her arm.

"Forget about the doll."

Amu looked up and lightly smiled.

"Sometimes there are things worth going after."

She pulled out of my grasp and ran into the house. From behind me TaeYang leaned away from the tree; his hands resting in his pockets. He walked towards us and chuckled lightly.

"Some people just don't learn."

"What do you mean?"

"Nothing," he replied casually before walking back to the tree.

Amu POV

I ran up the stairs and into Noelle's room. Immediately, I saw the doll resting on the bed. Taking in a breath of relief, I grabbed the doll and held it close to my chest.

Ikuto POV

From the corner of my eye, I kept a watch on TaeYang. Something was up with him. There was no reason for him to just come up and say something like that. Unless there was a problem. Unless he had a plan.

"Kain, keep a watch on him. Kukai, I need you to get Amu right now."

"What's wrong?"

"I don't know yet. Just go."

Kukai jogged over to the house and when I saw his back disappear into the doorway, I turned my attention to TaeYang. He seemed too cheery for some reason. His posture was relaxed as he leaned on the tree trunk and his eyes were light with amusement. He wasn't at all concerned with his hardly injured crew. Or the fact that he had been caught. He's not even struggling.

Then it hit me. He wasn't after us; that's why we won the gunfight so quickly. His target had never been us. It had been Amu to begin with.

"Kain! Put him down!" I shouted.

Before Kain could even move, TaeYang pulled out a gun and shot him in the shoulder and chuckled.

"Seems like you're a little too late Ikuto."

From out of his pocket he pulled out a small gray remote that had a small black button on it. It all seemed to go in slow motion from there. I pulled out my gun and just as I was about to shoot him, he pressed the button.

Before my eyes, the house exploded, pieces flying everywhere. As a kid, I had always been fascinated with explosives. I'd always wanted to see one in real life. But never had I imagined it would turn out like this. Not in a situation like this.

"AMU!" I shouted.

There was no answer to my call. And once the dust settled; I saw nothing but a pile of rubble. My heart stopped and I felt my knees go limp as I collapsed onto the floor. This wasn't happening.


A/N

Hello~ Yeah so I'm pretty lousy right now huh? I don't update for two weeks and when I do, it's a pretty bad chapter with a cliffhanger. Let's go for some good news. Um…I graduate middle school in 3 days, which means sooner updates. Hooray! I'm going to be starting a new story soon. That's pretty much it. But for bad news; I won't be doing a sequel. Sorry. I actually had some chapters written up but it was going nowhere. So I decided to end, but at least I'm making up for it with a new story. Haha.

Love,

Neko-Meme