"Shouldn't you be changing? Your mother dearest will probably not be pleased to find her little girl hasn't changed." Gyokuen looked down at him.

"What do you want?"

He wasn't going to play games. There was a vibe she was giving off that was going straight to the depths of his self, making him worry. Her hands moved to the table nearby, her fingers picking the dirt from under one nail as she smiled. "Not one for words, I see. I won't exchange pleasantries then." She looked over at him and smiled more. "Do you know what flows through you?"

"Magi power."

"Yes, my beloved Solomon experimented on you and made you into a perfect tool. So much power and strength, it's all buried within you. You know this. He worked for years on it. I should know. I found him in that institute, cuddling his wife and perfect child. Such a perfect child, he never would shut up."

"You knew him from the beginning?"

"I should." Gyokuen smiled. "I studied archeology. It was in the depths on Arabian country that I had found out about magi and their power. I traced down the bloodlines and had found the descendants. I worked for ages on trying to get somewhere, but I needed a scientist. I needed someone who knew how genetics worked." She sat down on the desk chair and paused for a moment. "Solomon was brilliant, but let's face it, he couldn't speak a second language to save his life let alone get the idea to work on something like this without someone."

"Why him?"

"Why do stars shine? Why do people commit murders?" Her gaze softened a bit more as she took in his response at that last part. "I should have known it was you who killed him. I know Kouha is dead."

"You brought all this pain onto everyone," he blamed.

"Yes, I did, didn't I? That pathetic bitch of a mother of yours didn't even see me come in and steal him away. She only found out when I had Solomon wrapped around a finger."

"But she followed after-"

"She did follow after you. Perfect, precious Leraje. She would have followed you further had Solomon not come to China with me. You see, I held the family in my hands, or what remained of it. I had money, power, and I stole away Solomon without even having to put any effort into it. He followed after me like a lost puppy. Especially when his institute found drugs in his office. He was so upset, coming to me as soon as he figured out it was his wife that had ruined everything. How dare Leraje ruin everything for him? Had they not been happy before?"

She laughed a little at that, looking towards the door and moving to go lock it.

"There we are. Where was I- oh yes, he came with me. You cried though." Moving forward, Gyokuen tried to touch him, only getting him to back up further towards the bed. "Cried and cried, until Solomon was asking why I was such a bad mother. Do you know how many of your diapers I changed?"

"You ruined peoples li-"

"You make it sound like I'm the only one. I took care of you, though, didn't I? There was you and your father's research to look after. The Al Thamen gathered like vultures to my news too. Their convent could finally be reinstated. After centuries, eons of isolation and pain. After the great fight of the ancient times, with the same names as before involved, with the same power brought back, but this time without someone stopping us; we could have it all."

"What do you mean the same names and power as before? What are-"

"Alma Toran was named after an ancient city the Al Thamen were founded in," Gyokuen explained. "The man who brought about all that power and happiness stopped the group there from bringing about power and control to themselves. He messed up everything and then, centuries after, a boy named Aladdin did the same, sending the Al Thamen to the furthest reaches of the land to hide forever. He and his companion Judal did that with the powers of magi."

The story had his mind in a whirl of confusion. This sounded like a fairytale of some sort. What did she mean by this?

"You don't seem to understand. This was destiny. I was fated to bring the Al Thamen back. I was fated to bring this power to its feet again and this time to do what had been unable to be done before. I was meant to ruin this world. I will not only bring about control to the Al Thamen, but I will destroy this world of its white rukh."

"You see-"

She pulled out the injector from her pocket. "You are going to give yourself to the Al Thamen to finish my dosages."

"I'm not. You're wrong about all of this. There isn't even a Judal. His name is something else. Va-vol… well it isn't Judal." He stepped forward, hearing a knock at the door.

"You have a minute left, Ms. Gyokuen," a familiar voice murmured.

"Thank you, Ithnan," Gyokuen replied. She moved to kneel before Aladdin, holding his arms and smiling brightly once more. Any strain her stories had created, the deep frown and the gleam of insanity vanished, replaced by that mask of joy. "So Aladdin, we are back to my topic. Enough of the past. You are going to help me. For one reason or another."

"I am going to get the cure from that bank and save Judal before leaving. I won't ever go with you."

"You're going to do this for Judal?"

"Yes, I am." Aladdin crossed his arms, nodding.

"How interesting. The man who murdered your father is the one you want to save."

"My father died in that fire. There was no murdering involve-"

"He had a change of heart." Gyokuen smiled. "He loved you. Then Leraje had found him in that evening. She had found you both that night, running into the fire to save your father. She was so passionate about him, even despite what he had done."

"…what are you saying?"

"Judal killed them both in that fire. I should know. I watched. He had to chase after Leraje, but he managed to kill her. He took such pleasure in slicing and chopping apart your father. He took his heart out and shoved it into his throat, the thing still beating in his hand. He enjoyed each scream, each moment of torture." She laughed a bit, "that's why it's so cute that you defend him and support him like this."

"The fire killed th-"

Gyokuen pulled her phone out, checking it before she stood up. "Time's up. I must go. Think about my offer, there's no other way around this. That cure will not save Judal. He has been experimented on for ages after that time. There's no telling what that cure will do to him. You will end up sending him into madness… maybe even killing him. Of course, perhaps you might like that. He did kill everyone who loved you in this world."

"He didn't," Aladdin argued, watching her open the door and Ithnan look inside. "Your people killed Ugo! No matter what happened in the past-"

"We are all innately evil, Aladdin. There is no such thing as goodness in the world. There is power. There is strength. And then there are those who are meant to die."

"You're wrong."

"The Depository Bank of Zurich."

Aladdin stared at her in shock. "What?"

"You heard me. The cure is in the safe in the Depository Bank of Zurich. Go ahead and go for it. Try to fix your friend, but remember, is he worth it? Do you want to save him? Only we can help you."

She turned and headed into the room across from him with Ithnan as the elevator binged. Judal was running out of it as fast as he could, arms wrapping around him and pulling him into the room only to slam the door shut. He looked around the room from the moment the door was locked, checking for any signs of anyone else before he spoke.

"We have to go now."

"Judal-"

"Gyokuen's here. We'll change you into something else and we're gone."

"Judal-"

"Hold on," Judal went to the bag, overturning it before he saw the white dress on the bed. "…oh. There it is." He moved to Aladdin's side and plucked the big flower from his bun, grabbing the fabric of the dress and yanking it over his person. Aladdin shivered at the cold before the white dress was held in front of him. "Come on now. I need you to change so we can go."

Aladdin stared at him before lifting his feet, climbing into the dress and letting Judal zip it before he spoke. "You're right..."

Judal froze. "You look bothered, Chibi."

"Gyokuen told me some things."

The man's gaze narrowed immediately. "What did she tell you?"

Aladdin shook his head. Judal had been truthful with him. He trusted the other without hesitation. The others were just going to trick him with their clever words. They knew vulgar deaths would maybe scare him. There was nothing but trust in him though. "She told me nothing but lies about Solomon. She said you killed him."

"Do you know how Solomon got obsessed?" Judal murmured to him softly, "He was obsessed because he had lost everything and he was greedy. He thought it would be smart to mess with you and everyone else. He thought he could get that happiness from before back by doing these experiments." His hands grasped the boy's clothes.

"I'm not worried about whether or not to trust you or anything. We're in this together." Aladdin smiled over at him before settling his clothes into place once more. "They were trying to make me lose my faith in you, but I have gotten used to you and I trust no one else." Aladdin turned, moving over to the mirror in the room before he glanced at Judal. "Help me put my hair in a braid again. This bun hurts now. My hair is too heavy."

"Leave it. We're going to be working around-"

"Gyokuen told me the bank." Aladdin looked over at him. "I don't think they're going to interfere."

"Not until we have it." Judal pulled him along towards the door, pausing to pull a tube of lipstick from his pocket. "Hold on, tilt your head up."

"What? No way!" Aladdin covered his mouth.

"Shut up little bride. Pucker up and let me do thi-"

"Little bride?"

"Yeah, you look like a little bride in that dress." Judal smirked a moment before he leaned in pressing his lips to the boy's before he pulled back, reapplying the lipstick to Aladdin's displeasure. His body tingled from having Judal kiss him, so much so that he didn't fight him as they left the room. He took charge as they made it to the elevator, pressing the main floor button and looking around as they came out in the lobby.

"Let's go, Judal!"

"Chibi, the others are no doubt going to be coming at any moment."

"There isn't time to spare for Zagan and Paimon." Aladdin hurried across the main room, his hand firmly wrapped around Judal's as he held his skirts in his other hand. They sprinted across the room and out the doors, but he could hear the sound of someone calling after them. He spun around to the wall outside the building. It was Zagan, Aladdin noted, tugging on Judal. "Kiss me," he hissed up at the other.

"Wha-"

"Kiss me now," Aladdin jumped at the other, wrapping his legs around Judal's waist and tugging him tightly to his person. His lips pressed against Judal's hard. His head tilted a little as he swept his tongue along Judal's lip and into his mouth. Aladdin tugged Judal's hair free, gathering it up in his hands and holding it in the way of the people around them.

"I love you," he told Judal in the most seductive voice he could muster. Judal's eyes stared at him in a stunned but strange manner. His hands held onto him tighter, his hands running up Aladdin's legs.

"Don't tell me such things," Judal warned, sounding serious.

"I don't care what you want to do with me," Aladdin continued, keeping up with the facade. He leaned near Judal's ear and grinned, "do with me what you will, Juju."

"I intend to..."

"Take it to a room," Zagan and a couple others complained with great distaste, one complaining about American tourists as they walked away.

Judal didn't waste any time in listening either.

"Come on," he murmured.

Funny how things change, the clock behind the desk clicking away as all parties approached and moved into the bank. Ja'far stood inside, moving slowly to the side of the room, slipping quietly into the bathroom with a staff member before the door closed behind him.

Sinbad and the Kou brothers walked in, moving to the desk and being taken back. The staff members creating no small talk. They moved through the aisles of boxes, the one they wanted being cemented in the back room.

Ja'far left the bathroom, adjusting the uniform on his person and flashing his badge before he went into the back room. The man who went to argue slowly dropped to the ground, being held up and taken to the back with Ja'far.

Silencers were useful in so many ways.

The two boys entered soon enough, their eyes going around the room.

"They're in," a man murmured in the corner, busying himself with a newspaper again.

Ja'far looked around the corner, seeing the two and reloading his gun. One shot at this, he told himself. He was going to take out Judal and grab Aladdin. Sinbad would follow for him. The Kou brothers would no doubt follow after him and he could take them down in his own domain.

"God help me," Ja'far murmured, holding a hand to his bleeding out shoulder. There wasn't any time to spare.

"Can I help you sir and lady," a front desk attendant asked.

"We're here to get to safety deposit box belonging to Solomon. He's my sister's real dad."

"I see. Can I see some identification, please?"

"Sure," Judal's voice replied. "Let me just- NOW CHIBI!"

The room went up in flames. Screams escaped the room and Ja'far kicked the body behind him back a bit more. It was time for action.