A Different Fate

by Musal

What if Train didn't know Creed killed Saya? What if he believed it was Chronos? What if Train helped Creed create the Apostles to get revenge on Chronos? What happens when Train learns the truth? CxT

28. Hiding Out

Disclaimer: I do not own Black Cat or its characters.

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"Doctor… Care to explain yourself?" Charden was leaning his elbows on the round table, resting his lips on his fingers as he eyed the man that sat across from him.

Doctor kept his eyes locked onto his leader's, ready to explain himself, but knew it wouldn't get him anywhere. "You already know what I was thinking, Charden-sama. I need the Black Cat."

Chadren sighed and leaned back in his chair, glancing at Echidna who sat next to him. She looked just as annoyed with Kanzaki's actions as he did. "Do you need him, or just really want him to continue with your experiments?"

Doctor adjusted his glasses, making sure his eyes were still on Charden's. "My experiments are what's going to give us the win against Chronos and that sweeper group. I would qualify that as a need."

Charden heard Allie sigh next to Doctor, but did not look at her. He wasn't pleased with her either, but knew he couldn't hold much against her. It wasn't like she could take the scientist on her own and the only reason she went was to try and keep him under control. Which, for the most part, sounds like she did. After hearing what she had to say, it appeared as though she was the only reason he finally decided to end the encounter with their former leader.

I'm still not sure how she was able to convince Doctor to leave in the first place. Even with Aja hurt, I wouldn't think Kanzaki would let Heartnet get away so easily.

It was also helpful to hear how much Creed had improved his skills. He only needed to use the second level of his Imagine Blade to fend off both Aja and Shiki all while leading them away from the Black Cat and his other friends. Shiki explained to him how they were ill prepared and he didn't agree with the plan at all since he was sure the two of them wouldn't be enough if they got into a fight, but Doctor wouldn't listen. The bug Taoist even tried to convince Kanzaki to bring at least Maro along, but it sounded like Doctor planned on taking the Black Cat without any of his friends noticing and avoid a fight completely.

I think they were lucky Train didn't wake up. If they were up against Creed and Train, they would have been in far worse shape.

Shiki and Doctor came back mostly unharmed, but that was due to the bug Taoist's ability to know when he was outmatched and made a quick exit. Doctor, on the other hand, was only kept safe by Aja. The panther was a bloody mess when they returned and even her nanomachines had a hard time repairing the damage. Doctor gave her another shot of the technology to help her recover faster, but if Creed hadn't been showing mercy, she probably would have been dead.

We're also lucky Creed doesn't have his killer instinct anymore. They may have all been dead for even daring to attempt to take Train.

This was precisely why he wanted to wait to make their move, and he let Doctor know that as soon as they came back. Charden lowered his head in his hands and rubbed his forehead in annoyance. "This conversation seems utterly pointless to me…"

Doctor nodded. "I agree." The man slowly stood from his spot, ignoring Allie as she glared at him. "If that's all, let me get back to my experiments."

Chaden slammed his fist on the table and gave him a stern look. "Sit down, Doctor. Just because you're too bullheaded to listen, doesn't mean I'm too benign to speak."

Doctor sighed and sat back down, looking more annoyed than regretful of what he did. "You know why I did it, so I don't know what more we have to talk about."

"We need to talk about how it didn't work and how you gave away the growing abilities of one of our most powerful weapons." Charden said as he glared at the man.

Doctor crossed his arms as he spoke. "Then why isn't Shiki here? He was part of the plan as well."

"Because Shiki was smart enough to leave when he realized how foolish your plan was and made us privy to the situation immediately." Echidna spoke for her partner since she was beginning to grow even more annoyed with the Doctor than Charden was.

Doctor sighed again and leaned back in his chair. "I fail to see how it's my fault that Shiki is gullible enough to believe we were being sent out on your orders."

Allie glared at the man as well. "Don't blame Shiki for your mistakes."

Doctor returned her look. "You're no better than any of us. I didn't see you trying to stop me."

Charden rolled his eyes and tried to calm himself down. "We all know you weren't going to listen to her and it's not like she can match you in a fight. It wouldn't have mattered what she said."

Allie gave Charden a grateful look, then leaned back in her chair. Doctor glanced at her one more time, before turning back to his leader to speak to him. "Charden-sama… I understand why you're upset, but there's nothing that can be done about it now. My plan was a failure and no one is as upset about it as I am. This conversation is going to get us nowhere fast and just waste valuable time I could be using to further our other successful experiments. Unless you want to sit here and continue shaming me, I suggest we just move on and learn from our mistakes."

Charden let out a deep, tired breath. "And just how will we know you are actually learning from your mistakes?"

"As I said, no one is as disappointed this didn't work than me. The lack of the Black Cat is punishment enough…" Doctor looked away from his leader and out the window, his eyes distant and irascible as he thought of his botched plan.

Charden watched him for a second longer, then turned to Echidna to gauge her reaction to the man's change in demeanor. She shrugged her shoulders and leaned back in her chair, as if saying she agreed the man looked defeated enough as it was and knew this conversation was getting them nowhere. The blood Taoist sighed and turned back to Doctor waving his hand in the air to dismiss him.

"Very well… Go back to your experiments. We will speak again later to begin making an actual plan to get the Black Cat."

Doctor looked pleased with that statement, but his eyes were still self-hating as he stood from his chair, bowed at his leaders, then left. Allie watched him go, then looked at the two at the opposite end of the table, as if asking if she was dismissed as well. Charden nodded at her and she left quickly, storming out of the room with such haste the blonde man had a feeling that while they were done having words with the scientist, she wasn't.

Charden sighed again as he leaned back in his chair and looked up at the ceiling. He felt Echidna's hand take gentle hold of his, smiling kindly at him as she caressed his fingers delicately. "You couldn't have prevented this."

Charden nodded and patted her hand as well. "I know, but that doesn't make dealing with it any easier. How can I lead this group if I can't control one madman?"

Echidna frowned and cupped his cheek gently. "No one can control that man. Allie seems to be most equipped for it and even she can't get a handle on him. And I already know Creed and Train couldn't control him either." She looked at the door where the scientist had left through as she finished her thought. "That man is going to do what he wants to do and all we can do is prepare for it."

Charden nodded in agreement, laughing bitterly as he spoke. "Similar to Heartnet, I guess." He smiled gratefully at her. "Thank you, Darling. I don't know what I'd do without you."

They heard a loud knock which brought their attention back to the door. Remembering who else he wanted to meet with, Charden gave the actress a quick kiss, then stood up to greet the next set of people who were about to enter the room.

"Come in."

The first one through the doors was a short woman with long blue hair and grey eyes. She was a bit younger than Charden, but her attitude was entirely different from the blood Taoist's. She was similar to the Black Cat, but less aloof and more disrespectful in her words and actions. This was proven by the way she so carelessly barged in and sat in a chair before she was even invited to, putting her small, bare feet on the table as she leaned back in her chair, carelessly chewing on a piece of gum. She wore baggy black clothes, making it difficult to tell what her body actually looked like and giving her the appearance of a much younger girl. While she was really in her early twenties, she looked like she was a young teen. Her name was Aliane Propp and despite her obvious beauty, it was hard to find her attractive with how crude her personality was.

Following soon after her was an old man with no hair to speak of, dark brown eyes and a cane to help him walk in the room. He nodded at Charden then frowned at the young woman who took the seat closest to the door. His name was Kenneth Carter, and he was an extremely eccentric man. He didn't speak much, but when he did, it normally didn't make sense to anyone except him, although Charden was beginning to understand what he meant with his statements. Most of his life had been dedicated to the destruction of Chronos, and now that he was getting older, Charden understood his mind was slipping, which made him all the more obsessed with taking the assassin organization down. He wore a giant red coat that dragged on the ground with completely white clothes underneath it.

Soon after him was another woman who was older than Aliane and Charden, but far younger than Kenneth. She was very tall with long, purple hair that reached her knees. She had steel blue eyes that reminded Charden a lot of Creed's except instead of reflecting unspoken insanity, they shone brightly with determination and composure. Her face was expressionless and she wore a white, button up shirt that barely covered her busty chest, black pants with long, high heel black boots. Her name was Nica Kao, and her personality was completely opposite of Aliane's.

Charden smiled at them, and gestured for them to sit. They listened and Nica smacked Aliane's feet off the table, scowling at her as she took a seat next to her.

Aliane returned the scowl and popped her gum. "What was that for?!"

Nica narrowed her eyes at the young girl. "Don't be so blatantly disrespectful to our leaders."

Aliane rolled her eyes and blew a bubble at the woman. "My feet hurt."

"Well, maybe if you wore shoes, that wouldn't happen…" Nica's voice was quickly turning threatening, which Aliane picked up on and smirked.

"Sorry, not everyone can afford to wear giant hooker boots." She tilted her chair back, but kept her feet off the table. "Besides, if I wore shoes, my Tao ability wouldn't work."

Before Nica could respond, Charden interrupted them by raising a hand up. He looked around the room and frowned. "Where's Mr. Darwin?"

Nica looked around the room in confusion while Aliane appeared as though she didn't have a care in the world. Kenneth cackled from his spot as he slammed his cane on the ground, as if he were happy the man was missing. "Off to slaughter the pigs for his sacrificial God then bathe in their blood! It is a full moon, after all."

The women in the room gave him a strange look, Echidna included, but Charden merely smirked. "Tis not the hour yet, Kenneth."

Charden stepped away from the table, ready to find the man, but was stopped when the man walked through the door. Charden smiled and gestured for him to sit. "Pleasure to have you join us, Mr. Darwin. Please, have a seat."

He gave the other people at the table a disgusted look, then shook his head. "I'll stand…"

Aliane smirked at him as she popped her gum again. "Too good to sit with us, Watts?"

Watts gave her a deadly stare as he clenched his fists. "Pop that in my face again and you'll learn how to choke on candy real quick…"

Charden gave the girl a stern look as he took a seat, silently telling her to let it go. Watts was quite unhinged, but had quickly become one of their strongest members. The level of his depravity and hatred topped Creed when he was at his worst, and that acrimony shone brightly in his macabre, green eyes. His red hair was cropped sloppy and short and he wore a black and white pinstripe vest with a red shirt underneath, black pants clinging tightly to his lower body.

He crossed his arms and leaned against the wall, giving Aliane one more evil look before addressing his leader. "What's so important it couldn't wait until training was over?"

Charden ignored the lethalness of his voice and addressed the group. "As you know, you are all my keys to obtaining and possibly taking down the Black Cat and Creed Diskenth. They do not know who you are, nor do they know your abilities. You all are my ace in the hole."

Kenneth cackled again as he stomped his cane on the ground. "Human curiosity, the urge to know, is a powerful force and is perhaps the best secret weapon of all in the struggle to unravel the workings of the natural world."

Echidna cocked an eyebrow and gave Charden a curious look. The blonde man smiled at her and explained the quote. "Aason Klub. A British Physicist. Strange connection, I know, but he's not wrong."

"This is not news, Charden. Why did this have to pull us away from becoming stronger?" Watts said firmly, moving away from the wall to lean on the table.

Charden looked back at the man and smirked. "Because we may be moving on that sooner than intended."

Nica tilted her head in confusion. "What's changed?"

Charden turned to look at her as he spoke. "Doctor's impulsive manners happened."

Aliane sat up a little, excited to hear the man had done something he wasn't supposed to do. "Oooh, what happened this time?! Did he set another room on fire?!"

Watts rolled his eyes. "We would know if that happened, nitwit. And why would that change our 'standstill' orders?"

Aliane shrugged her shoulders and blew another bubble. "I don't know… Maybe we'd have to move?"

"Then why would we still be here?" Nica asked, her voice annoyed as she spoke to the girl.

Aliane threw her hands in the air. "Hey! I didn't say it made sense! I just took a guess.!"

"Well, don't." Watts said as he finally decided to sit, but made sure it was as far away from her as possible. He turned back to his leader and gave him a serious look. "What happened?"

Charden took his seat again and addressed the group. "In Doctor's desperation to get the Black Cat, he inadvertently gave away Aja's increased abilities. Now, Heartnet and Diskenth are prepared for us, which has made things tricky."

Nica frowned. "Then why is this the time for us to move?"

Charden shook his head. "We're not moving yet. I just wanted to let you know we're moving the timeline up."

Aliane smirked. "Does that mean I need to hone up on my obeo skills?"

Charden smirked at her. "Yes. We're going to be sending you in soon."

Watts rolled his eyes. "I don't understand why we're using this twit to get closer to Diskenth's teacher. Don't you think she'll see right through her simpleton mind?"

Before Aliane could respond, Charden put up a hand to stop her and answered the man's question. "Because she's the youngest of you lot and capable of putting on a pity party with how much younge she makes herself appear. Besides, the old woman is drawn to people with tragic backgrounds."

Aliane smirked at Watts, leaning back in her chair again as she put her feet back on the table. "I'm also the only one that plays an instrument. Unless you've picked up the harp in the last few weeks."

Watts growled, knowing she picked that instrument since it was played by angles and slammed his fist on the table, causing her feet to fall off. Aliane stood up quickly, ready to launch an attack at the man, but was stopped when Echidna put a portal between her and Watts. The young woman glared at the actress, then took her seat slowly after seeing the serious look she was getting. Charden sighed and rubbed his eyes as Kenneth cackled wildly, stomping his cane roughly on the ground, encouraging the two to continue their fight.

Why is it so hard to find reasonable people to take Chronos down?

He knew the question was rhetorical and pushed it aside immediately when Nica spoke again. "What about the rest of us? Isn't it going to take weeks for that woman to trust the kid?"

Charden ignored the glare the women exchanged when Nica referred to her as a child and answered the woman's question. "Correct, but the rest of you will have a role to play as well. Nica and Watts will act as her parents and Kenneth will be her-"

"-Brother?!" Kenneth answered, then laughed merrily at his own joke.

Charden rolled his eyes and finished his sentence. "-Grandfather."

Nica and Watts exchanged a gross look, then turned back to their leader. "Isn't she supposed to have a tragic background story? How is that possible with a full family?"

Charden turned his smirk to Nica. "Not all tragic backgrounds involve the death of parents. Aliane's story will be properly sad, trust me."

Watts shrugged his shoulders, not happy to be playing the role of a father, but knowing he trusted Charden more than anyone else. "What about the rest of the Apostles? Are they getting a vacation?"

Charden shook his head. "No. Since Doctor acted so impulsively, they're going to continue leading the sweepers in the wrong direction. We're going to let them continue to believe we're using Aja to kidnap the Black Cat while we're quietly invading Creed's music school. His musician family has no fighting skills to speak of and both he and Heartnet care about Anastasia, which makes her and the rest of them the perfect target to go after."

Nica nodded in understanding, but still had another question. "What about Chronos? Isn't the Black Cat in a relationship with one of the numbers? And isn't he living with them?"

Charden smiled at her clever mind. "Yes, but we're pretty sure Chronos will be keeping a closer eye on the sweepers and not the musicians. Doctor's blunder actually gave us a good opening on all fronts. He went after Heartnet, not Creed's friends. We're going to do the exact opposite."

Watts smirked, seeming to piece together what his leader was implying. "So, while everyone will be distracted trying to keep Heartnet safe, we'll go after the vulnerable targets…"

Charden returned his smirk and nodded. "Yes. Chronos might even try to use Train as bait at some point, which we can use as an opportunity to throw them off guard. While the Black Cat and Diskenth are our targets, we don't need to go after them specifically."

Train and Creed's change in heart is going to be their downfall. While it might be hard to take them down, it won't be hard to go after their friends.

Nica frowned at Charden's statement as another question popped in her head. "If they are both our target, why are we only going after the Black Cat? Why not aim for Diskenth as well?"

Charden smiled at her. "Because we can't take either of them down. The only ones who can end either of their lives is, ironically, their counterpart. Only Creed can truly put an end to Train, and the Black Cat is the only one that can defeat Diskenth."

Nica was still not sure what he was talking about and pushed her question farther. "Then what's the plan with Heartnet? Why just go for him?"

"Because Train has more of a reason to kill Creed than Creed does to kill Train." Echidna answered for her partner. "We tried an experimental Chronos drug on Creed a while back, and it didn't work. Train was able to use Creed's feelings for him to snap him out of it, but now that the Black Cat no longer has feelings for Creed, it might work better on him."

Charden nodded. "And Doctor has had more time to perfect it. We're sure it'll work this time."

Watts rolled his eyes. "And I guess Kanzaki also needs the cat's DNA still?"

The blood Taoist nodded at the man. "Yes. He'll be able to make use of it, I'm sure. But the bigger goal is to entice the Black Cat to kill Creed."

Kenneth laughed again. "The cat will have his tongue!"

"And not in the way Diskenth wants…" Aliane added, happy she for once understood what the man was saying.

Charden sighed and rubbed his eyes, but chuckled quietly despite himself. "Yes, Mr. Carter. That's the idea…"

"What about the Black Cat?" Nica asked again. "Wouldn't that leave us to still deal with him?"

Charden lifted his head and looked at the woman. "Possibly. Our hope is that they kill each other."

Watts rolled his eyes. "That seems unlikely. Isn't Diskenth obsessed with the Black Cat?"

Aliane rolled her eyes. "Yes, but I'm sure he also doesn't want to die. He might be willing to kill his beloved if his life is on the line."

"No." Echidna said firmly. "He absolutely will not. Our hope is that Creed will inflict enough damage on the Black Cat that we can sweep in and finish him off ourselves."

"If he won't kill Heartnet, what makes you think he'll hurt him to the point of almost death?" Nica asked curiously.

"The only way I could see Creed hurting Train to that point is if he's trying to keep the Black Cat's friends safe." Charden added as he leaned his elbows on the table.

Alaine cocked an eyebrow at him. "Come again?"

Charden did not look at her as he elaborated his statement. "Train and Creed's relationship is shaky as of right now. While it does appear that the Black Cat is slowly coming back around to his ex-lover, as of this moment, it's easily broken. If Creed doesn't protect Heartnet's friends and one of them ends up getting killed, he may lose his precious cat for good."

Echidna smirked. "The plan is really for Train to go after his sweeper friends and hope Creed will protect them. If Heartnet is as out of control as we want him to be, he could kill Creed and Creed may injure him enough in order to protect their friends for fear of losing the Black Cat if he lets any of them die." She leaned back in her chair as she finished her statement. "And if the sweepers die while being caught in the middle of this… Who cares?"

Watts smirked wildly at her statement. "That's fine by me… When do we get started?"

Charden stood from his chair. "Soon. I doubt they'll be back to that school for a while after Doctor's stunt, but I also know Anastasia's stubborn nature won't allow her to keep it closed long. After all, she isn't long for this world."

He waved for them all to leave and Alaine was the first to stand. As soon as she opened the door, Jax stumbled into the room, cup in his hand implying he had been trying to listen in on the conversation. He looked up at the young woman who rolled her eyes and stepped over him carelessly. The rest of the new Taoists left in the same manner, not even sparing a glance at the teen as they went back to their training.

Charden frowned down at the boy, walking over to him and helping him stand. "What are you doing? You're still recovering. You should be resting."

Jax glared at him and pulled his arm away. "I'm fine. I just wanted to know what was going on…"

Charden sighed and glanced back at Echidna who was frowning at the boy as well. He placed a hand on his shoulder and turned him around, walking away from the meeting room as he spoke kindly to the teen. "I appreciate your tenacity, my boy, but if you truly want to be of use, then you need to take care of yourself."

Jax frowned and lowered his head. "When can I drink the Tao?"

Charden smirked and patted his shoulder. "Soon. Doctor wants to make sure the rest of your abilities are working well."

Jax pointed to a spot on his arm. "There was a cut on my arm a few hours ago and now it's completely healed!"

Charden frowned at his arm. "And how did you get that wound in the first place?"

Jax felt his face drain of color and looked away from his hero. "It was an accident…"

Charden cocked an eyebrow. "An accident, or a test?" His silence was the only answer he needed and the blood Taoit stepped in front of him, grabbing his shoulders so he would stop walking. "Jax… You need to start realizing putting yourself in danger is not going to help me or the Apostles. Just go back to bed and rest."

The teen nodded and walked past the tall man, then down at the hall towards his room. Echidna took this moment to step up behind Charden as they watched the boy walk away. She slipped her arm around the blonde man's elbow and leaned her head on his shoulder.

"He'll be okay, Charden. He just wants to be of service."

Charden sighed and patted her hand. "I know, but I don't want him to get himself hurt or killed because of his dedication to me and the Apostles."

Echidna smiled and lifted her head to see the man's face. "Just keep him on the right track and everything will be fine. Remember what the end goal here is."

The blood Taoist looked down at the woman and smiled. It was hard running this deranged group of lunatics, but he knew it would all be worth it in the end.

Echidna's right. We need to keep the end goal in mind. This is about the destruction of Chronos. We won't let anything get in the way of that.

---

Creed woke up hours before Train and chose to stay awake so he could watch his beloved sleep. He had been replaying the night events over and over again in his head since he was scared Train was going to wake up and tell him to get out. His Kitten had made it pretty clear last night that it was a one time thing and merely done for closure on his love's part. As much as Creed wanted to recreate the moment every night for the rest of their lives, his heart was telling him Train was never going to be that gracious to him again.

Still, I can't help but wish… Last night was the most incredible night of my life. Possibly better than our first night together. I guess I have something to thank Lin for.

Creed smiled blissfully as he reached out to touch his sleeping cat. He ran a finger gently through his hair, sighing longingly as he went over their night together again. Creed knew they already had the most amazing chemistry any two people could ever have which made their love making incredible, but now that Train had been with someone else, he learned a few things and gained certain skills the swordsman wished he could experience first hand.

Train had to tell me he's experienced the other end now. He had to get that thought in my mind and then tell me we could never do this again. Ugh, it's not fair! I want to feel what it's like to receive from my Kitten!

The silver man sighed and traced his beloved's cheek with his finger, then down to his chin and neck. Creed moaned lustfully as his fingers trailed down his cat's body, outlining the muscles of his chest and stomach, his body reacting just to the mere touch of his Kitten. When his fingers made their way to Train's lower abdomen, Creed swallowed thickly as he delicately traced his love's thighs, teasing himself as he stared eagerly at his cat's resting figure.

Needing to feel him one more time, Creed brushed his fingers between Train's legs and moaned hungrily, then moved his eyes back up to his love's face. Creed continued moving his fingers along his Kitten's lower body as he moved his lips closer to Train's neck and kissed it gently. He moved his lips and fingers together, outlining his beloved with his mouth and hands, making sure he memorized every inch, every feel, every taste, and every twitch Train subconsciously made. If last night was really going to be their last time together, Creed wanted to savor every second he had with his beloved.

As he kissed and caressed his love, Train moaned and slowly began to wake up. He stretched a little then looked down to see Creed lightly assaulting his body and blinked a few times to try and focus his vision. The cat was about to protest when he felt Creed's tongue circle his nipple and his lithe fingers brush lightly along the tip of his penis. When the silver man's other hand slipped behind him and grabbed his ass, Train moaned lustfully despite himself and pressed Creed's head harder onto his chest.

"C-Creed…" He whispered, arching his back a little as the silver man delicately wrapped his fingers around his member.

Creed smirked and moved his hand back and forth on his beloved's growing length. "Good morning, Train."

Train gasped quietly as Creed began to work his hand against him, his mouth moving up to the cat's neck again as he began lightly kissing the smooth skin there. Train felt his hands taking life of their own as he ran one through Creed's hair, the other clinging to his back tightly as he tilted his head to give the man more room to work. The gunman swallowed and tried to clear his mind of the pleasure to focus on what he told Creed last night about this never happening again, but found that almost impossible to do.

"Creed…" He whispered again, his voice shaking with desire as he desperately tried to push his words past the loving sensations his ex-partner was giving him. "Creed… I said we can't do this again…"

Creed whimpered and pulled his hands away from his love's lower body to cup each of his cheeks. He turned Train's head to look at him, pressing their foreheads together as he spoke. "Why?"

Train felt his heart beating wildly in his chest as Creed gave him an ardent look, finding himself at a loss for words when the swordsman asked him that question. "I-I…"

Creed gave his cat a small smile, then kissed him gently, relishing the feel of his beloved gasping fervently into his mouth as he returned his gesture with a zest Creed remembered all too well from their time together as lovers. He continued kissing Train, rolling over a little so he was back on top of his beloved, holding his Kitten's head still as he plunged his tongue deep into his love's mouth. When he felt Train wrap his arms around his back, Creed pressed his body against his cat's, moaning peacefully as he felt Train's tongue twirl and dance with his own.

Creed pulled away and nuzzled against Train's face, smiling blissfully as he spoke adoringly to his beloved. "I can tell you want me to touch you just as badly as I want to touch you. Why can we never be together again?"

Train's heart was beating rapidly in his chest when he felt Creed's lips brush against his own, his entire body on fire with passion for the man on top of him, but he felt himself begin to sober up from the intimate contact when his brain finally registered what Creed had said. He desperately wanted to push Creed off of him, but his heart and body ached too much to feel him again, to kiss him again. Even as he gave Creed a stern look, his hands did not leave the man's back and his lips continued brushing against Creed's as he spoke.

"...You know why, Creed. Do you really want me to remind you?"

Creed whimpered and frowned at his beloved, wrapping his arms around Train's neck as he snuggled close to his Kitten's neck. "I don't know how many more ways I can say sorry, Train… I'm sorry I took her from you, I'm sorry I lied to you, and I'm sorry I ruined what could have been between us…"

Train's heart was still racing in his chest, his body sparking a little from the kisses Creed was giving him and felt his hands moving on their own again as he held his ex-lover gently in his arms. "I wish it never happened… It doesn't feel the same without you."

Creed snuggled into his love's embrace and squeezed his cat a little tighter. "You mean the love making?"

Train sighed. "More than just that. Nothing feels the same without you… And I don't know why."

Creed whined a little and started kissing his Kitten's neck again, trailing them along to his shoulder, then back up his neck and to his chin. When he landed on his lips he felt his breath leave him as his heart leapt into his throat with the passion Train returned his kiss. He could tell in that moment that his beloved really did want to be with him again, even if he was unwilling to admit it. As he spun his tongue around Train's, he could feel the earnest longing the cat had to love him again, but also sensed the sadness behind the embrace that Creed knew was holding him back from caving fully into those desires.

"I'm so sorry, my love…" Creed whispered between kisses. "I'm so sorry I ruined us… I'm so sorry I hurt you… I'm so sorry…"

Train felt his ex-lover's tears begin to fall as they kissed and held him a little tighter. He told Creed last night was the last time they'd be together, but each time their lips met, the cat felt himself beginning to forget his own words. The more they kissed, the more Train pushed for each kiss to be a little deeper. When he felt Creed moan and return the deepness of his kiss, Train reached over to the side of the bed where he knew the lube still was and grabbed it. He poured what was left onto his hand and moved it back over to Creed and grabbed him lightly between his legs.

Creed gasped loudly when he felt Train's strong fingers grease up his shaft and moaned at the feel of his love's lips and tongue that still kissed him impassionedly. When he felt Train move his hand away, Creed positioned himself between his beloved's legs, scooping his hands underneath his Kitten's rear and slowly lowered him onto his hard penis. He moaned longingly as he entered Train again, reveling in the purr his cat let out as he pushed himself all the way inside. He stayed there for a moment, keeping his hands on his love's ass, their lips never parting as they simply enjoyed being joined with each other.

Creed continued to kiss his love, speaking breathlessly to Train. "I thought you said we'd never do it again… It's only been six hours…"

Train wrapped his arms around Creed's neck, running his fingers fervently through the silver man's hair. "Just… Once more… Once more to say goodbye for real."

Creed whimpered, but nodded his head. "Yes, Train… If that's what you want."

This time around, Creed moved slower and softer, making sure Train felt his love with each thrust he made into him. His lips stayed attached to his love's, his hips continuing to move in and out of his Kitten, moaning against his cat's lips as he felt Train grip him a little tighter. Train tightened himself up as Creed moved a little faster, his body on fire as he began to spark excitedly when the silver man brushed against his pleasurable spot.

"Oh, Creed…" Train whispered, enjoying their slow, simple love making just as much as the rough session they shared last night. "Creed… I-I… I…"

Creed pulled away from his love a little, making sure their eyes met as he continued thrusting in and out of his Kitten. His heart began to beat even faster when he saw the look his love was giving him, hoping against hope he was about to say something Creed's ears had been dying to hear him say again.

"Yes, my love?"

When Train saw Creed's sultry blue eyes look into his, the cat moaned yearningly, trying to be careful with what he said since he knew it could get him in trouble. "I… I…" He shook his head and rested it on Creed's shoulder, burying his face into the swordsman skin so he wouldn't see the obvious love for the man that was showing in his eyes. "I-It feels so good, Creed…"

Creed frowned and moved a little faster into his cat, still just simply brushing against his pleasurable spot as he moved Train's head back so he could look in his eyes again. "Is that really what you wanted to say, Train?"

Train knew his face was flushed and his eyes were glossed over with passion. His heart was beating so fast in his chest he thought he was going to pass out from the thrill of seeing Creed's worshipping eyes gaze into his. To prevent himself from speaking again, Train reattached his lips to Creed's, hoping that would be enough of a distraction for the man inside him to stop pushing him to say something he desperately did not want to admit.

Creed returned his beloved's passionate kiss for just a second before he pulled away and pushed his beloved back onto the bed. He adjusted both of Train's legs so they rested on top of his arms, holding the gunman's hips and keeping the cat's lower body raised so he could continue thrusting into him. Creed also made sure to move his beloved down a little so he could stay inside of his Kitten and their soft, sweet love making could keep going. The swordsman gripped his beloved's hips tightly so as to keep him still as his member continued thrusting gently and lovingly into him.

"Train…" Creed said as he leaned over his love, staring at his face, trying to pry his Kitten's eyes open with his prurient eyes. "Train… I love you so much…"

Seeing Train was still not opening his eyes, Creed adjusted himself inside the man slightly so he hit his pleasurable spot dead on. When he saw Train's eyes shoot open, Creed moved his head closer to his love's, keeping his penis where it was as he tried to get Train to finish his earlier sentence.

"I love everything about you, Train. I love the way you feel, the way you sound. Your moans are more beautiful than the world's most melodic choir, your skin is sweeter than the most delectable treat, and your body is more exquistent than the world's most erotic sculptures."

Creed moved in and out of Train again, poking his spot over and over, seeing the red in his love's eyes, knowing his Kitten was enjoying the sensations he was giving him and the romantic words he was whispering. He stabbed at his beloved's spot again, pausing there once more as he felt his Kitten reopen the cuts he made on his back last night.

"If it's true that we accept the love we think we deserve… Then I know you can never love me again... Because I don't deserve you…" He was beginning to pant as he moved faster into his cat, knowing he was going to cum soon. "If you ever decide to give your heart to me again, I will take it readily and I will protect it with my life… Until then…"

Creed moved faster into his cat, hitting that spot over and over again as Train cried out with each thrust, gripping the man's back tightly as he kissed the swordsman between his words, his body shining brightly with a passionate electricity the gunman knew he couldn't hide. The Black Cat gasped breathlessly as Creed stabbed onto his pleasurable spot again and stopped his body, applying more pressure to give Train more joy than the cat thought possible.

"You give me strength I never knew I could have… You give me the courage and confidence I need to get through this dark and demeted world… You make even the coldest days warmer, the rainy mornings sunny, and the long, dark nights bearable and bright. Every day, you make me believe in a better world and every day without you, I fall into despair…"

Creed moved in and out of Train again, his panting getting faster as he thrust in and out of his beloved a bit more frantically, kissing his Kitten again as he heard Train cry out amorously.

"...But even in that despair, I find you again and see the world as a phenomenal place… I am incomplete without you, but with you, I am whole."

He thrust into his love again, keeping himself there as he leaned closer, pulling Train up a little more as he pressed their chests together. "Don't you feel that, Train? Our hearts beat as one when we are with each other… No two other people are more suited to be together than us. We are simply meant to be, my love…"

Creed gave his Kitten a kiss, then set him back down, continuing moving in and out of him once more, one hand remaining on his hips while his other took a gentle hold of Train's face so the gunman would look at him when he finally came. "But… I understand why you cannot see that… I understand why you cannot accept that… I'm sorry I destroyed what we had, and I'm sorry this is our final farewell…"

Creed locked eyes with his cat, feeling his love's body sparking hotly, his eyes turning a deep shade of red as he gasped loudly with each of the swordsman's thrusts. Creed moved even faster into his beloved, his breathing getting faster and faster, matching his movements into his beloved as Train dug his fingers into his flesh even more.

"...I love you, Train…" Creed said as he ran his fingers through his Kitten's hair, knowing he was going to burst any minute. "And I will always love you…"

Creed moved his hand back to Train's hips to hold him still and moved even faster inside his cat. Train cried out loudly, sitting up to kiss Creed again as the silver man poked at his spot over and over again, pulling the cat onto his lip so they would be closer when they climaxed. He didn't want this moment with Creed to end, but he knew it was going to. He tried to hold it in for a bit longer, believing again this would be their last time together and wanting it to last. Train knew if he ever wanted to have it again, Creed would willingly give it to him. After all, this was already the second time without twenty-four hours and Creed obviously had no complaints.

"Creed…" Train cried out as he bit his lower lips, trying to hold back so he could enjoy how the man felt for a little long. "Oh, Creed… Oh, God… I-I can't…"

Creed's breath was fast as he moved, trying to do the same thing Train was as he moved in and out of his beloved quickly. "It's okay, Train…" He moved himself even faster, hitting that spot inside Train with as much passion he could muster. "You can let go… I'm ready…"

Train nodded and kissed Creed again, holding on for just a few more minutes before he finally screamed the man's name and released his seed onto his chest once more. Creed thrust into him a few more times, breathing violently as he finally shouted Train's name as well, exploding into his love once more as he collapsed on top of him.

When Creed fell on top of him, Train wrapped his arms around his waist, desperately trying to catch his breath while figuring out the tense heat that still encased his heart. He thought after last night, he wouldn't still have this feeling, but not only did he have sex with Creed again less than a day later after swearing he wouldnt, Train's heart was still longing to be with the man on top of him again.

I shouldn't have done this. This was wrong… Wasn't it?

His head kept screaming at him that this was wrong, but his heart begged him to be with Creed again. He hadn't felt this relaxed and complete in years. Not since he was with Creed. All the time he spent with Lin didn't even come close to the happiness and fullness he felt when he was with the swordsman and he was slowly starting to see what Anastasia meant by listening to his heart.

But… I can't… This doesn't change anything that happened between us. This doesn't change that he killed Saya. I got this out of the system, and after having sex with him twice, that should be enough…. Right?

Despite his thoughts, Train kissed the top of Creed's head and snuggled his face into the man's silver locks. His heart trembled with delight when he heard the swordsman sigh happily at his kiss and cuddled closer to Train's chest. Feeling the overwhelming urge to kiss Creed again, he repeated his gesture a few more times, smiling with every joyful noise the man made against his chest.

"Will you really never love me again, Train?" Creed asked sadly, nuzzling his face as close to his beloved as he could.

Train sighed and ran his fingers lightly along the man's back. "I… I don't think I can answer that question, Creed…"

Creed pushed himself up so he could see his love's eyes and beamed gleefully down at his Kitten. He tried to hide how hopeful he sounded when he asked his question, but he knew Train could hear it. "What does that mean, Train?"

Train sighed and pushed the man gently off him, deciding he tortured Creed enough with his loving, final embraces and began moving towards the edge of the bed. "Because I'm still confused, Creed. I don't know what I want, but I'm hoping that now that I've gotten this out of my system, I can finally start to figure that out."

Creed frowned at his love's back, watching as Train slipped off the bed and started dressing himself. "But… Do I at least have a shot again?"

After seeing how passionately Train had reacted to both of their sexual encounters, Creed couldn't help but think there was something more buried in his love's heart. Creed even swore Train was going to tell him that he still loved him during this love making session, but stopped himself. He tried to get the words out of his beloved, but Train calmed up quickly when Creed began poking at his heart.

Once Train had his pants on, he glanced back at Creed who was still lying on the bed, giving him one of the most pathetically hopeful looks the cat had ever seen. He frowned and ran his fingers through his hair. "Creed… I still need to work through what's going on with Lin."

Creed frowned and lowered his head, afraid to ask his next question. "Do you still plan on ending it with him?"

Train nodded. "I have to. There's clearly too much going on in my head for me to be with anyone right now. I can't stay with him."

Creed raised his head and looked hopeful once more, asking his question again as if he forgot he already asked it. "Then does that I mean I have a chance?"

Train sighed deeply and began searching the floor for his shirt. "I'm not answering that, Creed."

Mostly because I don't honestly know the answer to it…

He couldn't deny what his heart was telling him anymore. Whenever he looked at Creed, he felt it beat faster and that addictive warmth always overtook his soul. Train found his thoughts wandering to Creed more and more lately and after experiencing what it was like to sleep with him again, the cat knew there was something more in his heart than he was willing to admit.

Train frowned as he looked under the bed for the last bit of his clothing. "Where's my shirt?"

Creed forgot his sad thoughts for a second as he looked over at the side of the bed to see his love's shirt hanging there. He reached over and grabbed it, then crawled towards the end of the bed to dangle it in front of his Kitten.

"Right here, Train."

Train looked up to see Creed smiling innocently at him and felt himself smile at the sweet look. Again, his heart was beating faster and his body begged him to embrace the man and tell him he wanted to be with him again, but Train did none of that. Instead, he made a grab for the clothing and narrowed his eyes at Creed when he pulled it away. He tried again, but Creed rolled to the side and crawled back towards the headboard, trying to entice his Kitten to follow him back on the bed.

The gunman knew what Creed was trying to do, but he was allowing his heart to take over for a bit and decided to play along with his ex-partner. Train leapt on the bed and pinned his legs on either side of Creed's, pushing them together as he pushed the man's back onto the bed. Seeing the swordsman was distracted by their closeness, Train took that moment to grab his shirt and slide it back on his arms.

Seeing the pouty look on Creed's face, Train smirked. "I need to get dressed, Creed. Everyone is going to start to wonder where we are."

Creed shrugged his shoulders. "I don't see the problem with that. They might actually still be sleeping. It was a long night."

"I'll say…" Train said as he began buttoning up his shirt.

Creed smirked and licked his lips as he watched Train slowly begin to dress. He sat up quickly and flipped his love over and pinned him back on the bed. Before his Kitten could react or protest, Creed pinned the gunman's arms down with his knees and began wiggling his fingers around Train's stomach. He felt his love start kicking his legs and laughing wildly which only encouraged Creed to move his hands faster and attack his beloved's neck with his mouth. Instead of trying to turn Train on, Creed aimed at torturing his Kitten with his ticklish touches, smirking when he felt the gunman try to push him away, but laughing cheerfully as he did so.

"Stop it! I give! Uncle, uncle!"

Creed pulled back from his love, moving his legs away as he stopped moving his fingers. He looked down at his cat, running his fingers through his hair gently as he smiled peacefully at him. "We could be happy again, Train… You only have to give us another chance…"

Train sighed and pushed Creed off him again, sliding off the bed once more. "It won't be the same and you know it."

Creed frowned as his love finished buttoning up his shirt and made his way over to the chair where he saw his jacket. "It will if you just let your feelings be instead of forcing them into obscurity…"

Train knew Creed didn't mean for him to hear that, so he chose not to acknowledge it. He found the man's clothes piled on the ground, happy to see they were all together and picked them up. The cat threw them at him, chuckling quietly at Creed's surprised reaction. He couldn't help but think the silver man looked cute as he pulled the clothes off his face and gave Train a frustrated look.

"Just get dressed so we can leave the room."

Creed sighed sadly as he clung to his clothes. "I don't see the problem everyone in knowing what we did…"

Train rolled his eyes. "You would say that… I still need to talk to Lin."

Creed slid off the bed and gave his beloved a curious look. "Are you… Going to tell him what we did?"

Train sighed and ran his fingers through his hair again. "I… Don't know yet. I know I need to end it, but I don't know if I need to tell him that. I'll already be hurting him enough as it is…"

Creed frowned sympathetically at his love as he stepped towards the bathroom, clothes still in his arms. "Don't want to rub salt in the wounds?"

Train shrugged his shoulders. "I guess… I also don't want him to think you're the reason I'm ending it. Your relationship with him is contentious enough as it is."

Even though Creed is a big part of the reason I'm ending it, he's not the main reason. He just happens to inadvertently be a factor in it.

Creed frowned as he placed his hand on the doorknob of the bathroom. "It's not my fault. I tried to be cordial with him."

Train sighed. "I know…"

He's right. Lin has been much more hostile towards him than Creed has been towards Lin.

Despite knowing how badly Creed wanted him to end his relationship with Lin and be with him again, Train knew how hard the silver man was trying to be supportive of their coupling. Even now, Creed didn't beg Train to leave Lin and to come back to him. He only asked if he had a shot now that Train made the decision on his own to break up with the number.

And that's respectable. Creed has always been supportive of us, no matter how much it hurt him. Even knowing that I'm going to end it, Creed is still trying to be a good friend.

Train frowned as Creed stepped into the bathroom. "What are you doing?"

Creed tilted his head in confusion. "I'm going to take a shower. What does it look like?"

Train rolled his eyes. "Don't you think we need to let everyone see we're alive?"

Creed gave his beloved a cheeky smile. "And don't you think it'll be strange if we both appear down there together? I thought you didn't want anyone to know what we did. Look at me, Train." He gestured to his still nude body. "I'm a mess! I can't go down there like this. I'll give it away."

Train felt himself blush as he looked Creed up and down, then looked away. "T-true… Is there even any soap in there?"

Creed rolled his eyes. "Yes, Train. I had all these mansions stocked with supplies before we even stayed in there. Every bathroom is full of soaps and shampoos. You might want to let everyone else know that as well."

Creed sighed happily as he saw the cute look his cat gave him as he nodded his head. The silver man leaned against the door, deciding to let his beloved stare at his naked body a bit longer before he washed himself off. "You might want to shower too, Train. Just to cover our bases."

Train rolled his eyes at the man's slightly sarcastic tone and peeked at Creed through the corner of his eyes. "Later. I really don't want them to start wondering where we are. Besides, it might make more sense for us to appear separately than at the same time. That might look suspicious." He turned around and put his hand on the doorknob, but told Creed one more thing before he walked out of the room. "You might also want to take a look at your back. And know that I'm sorry."

The cat left the room quickly, shutting the door behind him before Creed had a chance to respond. Creed frowned at the door, then stepped into the bathroom to look in the mirror to see what his beloved meant. He laughed gleefully when he saw the large scratch marks Train left, seeing they had reopened a little during their morning session and sighed peacefully.

They're a mark from my Kitten… I hope they never heal.

With that, Creed turned on the shower water and stepped in, sad to be washing away the feel of his love, but knowing he needed to if they wanted to keep the morning and night's events to themselves.

---

Creed extended his shower a bit just so he could gather his thoughts and try to calm down his beating heart. He knew if he went down to talk with his friends right away, he would give away what happened with his and his beloved last night and this morning. As it was, he already wanted to shout to the world he was able to make love to Train again.

Twice! TWICE!

On top of all that, his Kitten was going to end it with Lin. Train said it had nothing to do with Creed, but the silver man knew better. The entire night and the whole morning his love had been giving him the same look he used to when they were together. Train tried to hide it, but with his upgraded Tao abilities, it was impossible to hide how he really felt.

And I know he was stopping himself from saying it this morning. I'm not stupid, I'm still a part of his heart. Even if it's just a little and Train doesn't want to admit it.

Train said that they wouldn't be having sex again, but Creed was hopeful that wasn't true. Just from the way his Kitten was looking at him before he got in the shower proved that his beloved wanted to do it again. However, Creed knew for a while now that Train was still physically attracted to him, so it wasn't surprising to see his cat staring at him. Creed would never force anything on his love, but that didn't mean he wasn't going to offer it again.

He admitted it wasn't the same as with Lin. That means there's a least a part of him that understands what we share between us can't be recreated with anyone else. There's no one else in the world that can give him what I can. And there's no one that can give me what Train can.

Creed knew the blatant truth in their fate since the moment he laid eyes on Train and his Kitten agreed with him at one point, but everything fell apart when he found out the silver man's terrible secret. Creed knew he had no rights to Train after what he did to him, but after everything that happened between them recently, he couldn't help but hope his beloved was starting to forgive him more and would maybe even be with him again one day.

After all, it wasn't just last night and this morning. There was the time he kissed me in the yard, then that night when he finished the bottle of wine, and when we were in the garden together yesterday. There was even almost a moment in the museum.

All of that combined with the loving looks Train was starting to give him again made the swordsman's heart soar buoyantly through the sky and pray every night that he could be with his love again. However, he understood why Train was so hesitant. Anyone else would have thrown Creed away long ago, not taken them in and made sure they were growing and learning every day. No one else would encourage his musical hobbies and even consider him part of their team again after killing the person they cared most about.

That's just how amazing Train is… He's the most generous, kind hearted, forgiving person in the world.

Creed's adoring thoughts of his beloved were cut off as he made his way downstairs and heard his Kitten yelling at someone. As he made his way closer to the common area, he could tell his love was angry with Rinslet. He wasn't sure what was going on, so he picked up the pace a little to make sure Train was okay. When he stepped in the room, he saw Eve sitting on the large windowsill of the bay window reading a book without a care in the world. Sven was sitting on the couch, rubbing his eyes as he watched Train and Rinslet yelling at each other. Kyoko was sitting in the large chair that was next to Train, trying to cling to his arm but unable to as the Black Cat was flailing them angrily at the thief.

"Why do you even have his number?!" Train shouted at the woman.

Rinslet glared at the man as she spoke. "He's my friend! Why wouldn't I have his number?"

Train gestured both his arms in the air which knocked Kyoko off him. "Because it's weird!"

"Weirder than us being chased down by a giant panther, two mad scientists, and a short man who can control bugs?!" Rinslet's rebuttal was strong, and she knew Train wouldn't have anything to say to that.

Train gawked at her for a minute, then rubbed his eyes in frustration, pulling his arm away from the girl next to him. "Touché..."

"What's the big deal, anyway? Doesn't he have the right to know?" Rinslet added as she folded her arms across her chest.

"That's… Not it…" Train said as he collapsed onto the couch next to Sven, pushing Kyoko away again as he rested his head in his hands. "I was going to reach out to him…"

Rinslet sighed and took a few steps away from Train, as if she was done with their argument. "Well, he's already on his way. He'll probably be here any minute."

Train pulled his hair and gave her a tired look. "You have got to be kidding me... "

I wanted time to be able to at least gather my thoughts a little before I talk to him. I was going to reach out to him today, but now I don't even have time to shower before he gets here.

Creed could hear the frustration in his love's voice and was beginning to work out what happened. However, he wanted to be sure, so he decided to approach Eve, since she was the closest and would tell him the unaltered truth.

"What's going on?" He took a seat across from the girl and crossed his legs as he kept his eyes on Train.

Eve put her book down, the same one she had with her at Creed's concert, so she could address the man. "Rinslet texted Lin. She told him where we were and what happened to Train."

Creed rolled his eyes, understanding why his Kitten was upset. "Almost happened…"

Eve gave him a curious look, as if there was something different about him, but decided not to question it. She glanced at Train again as she spoke to Creed. "I just don't understand what Train's so upset about. If he was going to call Lin anyway, what difference does it make if Rins did it for him?"

Creed wasn't sure if he should explain to the girl what Train planned on doing, but decided she was trustworthy enough to keep a secret and the cat would be out of the bag soon enough. Especially if Lin was already on his way. "Train… Is going to break up with Lin."

Eve put her book down again and blinked at Creed, then Train. A small smile graced her lips which she subtly covered with her book again as she eyed Creed knowingly. "Good. He was forcing it. I think Rinslet is the only one who couldn't tell Train wasn't happy with him."

"Or she didn't care." Creed added as he watched his love continue arguing with the thief while pushing Kyoko off him. "I don't think Train was unhappy. I just don't think he was ever on the same page as Lin. Emotionally speaking."

Eve nodded as she turned a page in her book. "I don't think they were on the same page ever. Train made it very clear from the getgo that he didn't want anything serious and turned Lin down several times. From the outside looking in, it looked like Train was forcing the relationship to spare Lin's feelings and to make himself move on from you. Lin should have seen this coming and given Train space before making a move."

Creed smiled happily at her. She was wise beyond her years and after watching people interact with each other, it looked as though she had learned a lot about human interactions and social cues. Eve was able to read into people better than almost everyone else in their group, including Creed. The swordsman knew Sven and the others didn't give her enough credit for the amazing young woman she was becoming.

As he watched his love continue fighting with Rinslet, he giggled at the angry looks Train gave the woman, then looked around the room and noticed none of his musician friends were around. "Where's everyone else?"

Eve shrugged her shoulders. "I'm not sure about everyone, but Sven checked on Anastasia this morning and she was already awake. He brought her to the kitchen for breakfast and Aimee was there as well as Dae, but we haven't seen Francisco or Sergey. The girls are still in the kitchen. It didn't seem like they wanted to hear the argument."

Creed nodded. "That sounds about right for all of them. I'm sure the other two are still sleeping. They strike me as the type to sleep in late."

As he finished his sentence, he saw Eve look behind him and suddenly felt two hands grab his shoulders firmly. Sergey leaned down and whispered in his ear delicately, keeping his hands where they were as he spoke. "You worried about me, prekrasnyy?"

Creed rolled his eyes and shrugged his shoulders out of the man's grasp. "No. Just enjoying the peace of not being groped while you're gone and wondering how much longer I have until that bliss is ruined."

Sergey pouted at him, then gave him a quick kiss before he stood up. "You tease my heart, prekrasnyy. Is there food?"

Creed sighed and gestured to the kitchen. "Go ask our beloved teacher. She's in the kitchen with the other women."

Sergey winked at him, running his fingers through his silver hair lightly, chuckling when Creed batted him away again and made his way to where his crush pointed him to. He gave Train and Rinslet a strange look as he passed them, but shrugged his shoulders and continued on his path to food. Train noticed the man walk past them and gave Creed a concerned look which made the silver man's heart set on fire.

He knows Sergey is always touching me and put aside his anger towards Rinslet and anxiety that Lin will be here soon to check on me. There has to be something there for me in his heart.

He nodded at his cat to let him know he was okay, then noticed the last of his musician friends walked through the door. Fransico rubbed his eyes and looked at Creed, asking a silent question the silver man already knew the answer to. Creed gestured to the kitchen again, smiling as the man nodded his head and ignored everyone else in the room in favor of his destination.

His ears perked when he heard someone trying to get in through the door. When the knob didn't turn, whoever it was began banging on it pretty roughly, as if they wanted to wake everyone in the mansion up. Creed rolled his eyes when he realized who it most likely was and stood from his spot.

"I'll let him in." Creed smiled kindly at Train who was giving him a nervous look.

The only person Train's ever broken up with is me, and that was a clear cut reason to end our relationship. Lin is a bit more innocent than I am.

Despite thinking this, Creed didn't believe it was entirely true. He always thought Lin was being a bit selfish in his desires to be with Train. The first time they met, Lin kissed Train and continued making advances towards him even after being turned down several times. When Train finally did cave, it was really only out of pity for Lin and probably a bit of frustration for always having to deal with his flirtatious behavior. Yes, Train was attracted to him, but like Eve said, he made it very clear from the beginning he wasn't ready for a relationship.

Lin just wouldn't take no for an answer. Train's told me no several times and I always make sure to back off. Any slip ups I have were out of my control and any sexual encounters we've had together were started by my Kitten. I've never forced something on him.

That was only partially true. Back when they were in the Apostles together, Creed started forcing Train to stay inside so he wouldn't leave, but he understood now how wrong that was. It became one of the many things he was sorry for. Creed also knew Lin didn't force anything on Train either, but he was certainly persuasive enough to encourage Train to say yes. Which Creed thought was almost as bad as forcing his beloved to do things his heart really didn't want to. He wasn't sure how he was able to do it, but he was able to turn Train's constant "no's" into hesitant "yeses".

He's a lot like Sergey. Maybe they'll get along and both of them will be taken off Train and my's hands…

Creed opened the door quickly and had to force himself from smiling when he looked down at the shorter man. He didn't want his body to give away how excited he was about the conversation he knew Number X was going to have with Train, so he had to work extra hard to make sure his smile looked genuine and his eyes were normal.

"Good morning, Number X. Train is-"

Creed didn't get a chance to finish his statement as the shorter man pushed past him and ran into the mansion. The silver man watched as Lin ran down the hall and stopped when he reached the doorway that led to the common room. Creed closed and locked the door, then followed after him. He made it to the doorway just in time to see Train standing up to greet the number and watched as Lin threw himself at his beloved, wrapping his arms around his neck as he buried his head into his shoulder.

"Oh, Train, I'm so happy you're okay! I got here as soon as I could."

When Train felt a few tears falling from the man's eyes his body went cold. He looked up at Creed for strength and was able to take in a deep breath to calm himself down when he saw his ex-partner smiling reassuringly at him. Train patted the man's head as platonically as possible, not wanting to encourage his loving behavior since he knew their relationship wasn't going to be intact much longer.

"Thanks to Creed. He was able to keep us all safe." He smiled at Creed as he spoke, knowing his eyes were changing their hue again as he watched his ex-lover smile back at him.

Lin pulled back a little and looked up at Train with slight confusion in his eyes. Between his strange pat on the head and barely responding to his worried words, he was concerned something might have been wrong. When he saw his Sweet Cat giving Creed a lovingly look, he narrowed his eyes and then looked at the silver man. He clung to Train a bit tighter, nodded at the man gratefully.

"Thank you for protecting my lover, Creed…"

Creed sighed and took his spot across from Eve again. "You know I would never let anyone hurt Train."

Lin was not happy with his response and made sure Creed knew it. "I would have been there if I wasn't needed at Chronos. You know that."

Creed nodded, but ignored the man's angry look as he leaned over and tried to read the book with Eve. The bio-girl glanced at Lin, then moved over a little so Creed could sit next to her and opened her book a little more so the man could read. Creed's refusal to argue with him only made Lin more frustrated, but he knew it was more at himself than at anyone else. He hated himself for not being there for Train and hated even more that Creed had been there for Train.

Train knows it's not my fault, right? He knows how it is with Chronos. He knows I would do anything for him…

"Well, well, well, who's this pulchritudinous young man?"

Lin was still clinging to Train's shirt as Sergey addressed him, the rest of the musicians walking in behind him. Anastasia was being helped to the couch by Aimee while Francisco and Dae sat on the opposite couch, sipping coffee that must have been brewed hours ago. Number X frowned at the man as he tried to grab his face and pressed his body against Train's.

Train watched the interaction between the two of them and decided to answer for him. "Sergey, this is Lin. Lin, this is Sergey. An… enthusiastic clarinetist."

Sergey rolled his eyes and walked towards Creed. "Yeshche odin krasivyy muzhchina, vlyublennyy v koshku. Tebe deystvitel'no povezlo." (1)

Lin watched as the man took a seat across from Creed on the bay window. When he reached out to tickle Creed's foot, the silver man glared at him and pulled his legs up to his chest, moving a little closer to Eve as he tried to concentrate on the book she was holding.

Understanding who else the Russian man meant, Lin clung to his boyfriend a bit more possessively. "Izvinite, chto razocharoval vas, no moye serdtse prinadlezhit Train." (2)

Sergey pulled away from his teasings of Creed as he blinked at the man. "Mne govorili eto ran'she…" (3) He turned back to Creed curiously. "Just how many of you speak Russian?"

Eve raised her hand, but did not look away from her book. "YA govoryu nemnogo." (4)

Sergey blinked at her. "YA nachinayu chuvstvovat' sebya neoriginal'nym." (5)

Creed rolled his eyes. "Chronos are required to learn as many languages as possible. Lin works for them. Eve learned on her own because she's such a bright young lady."

Eve smiled at him, then went back to her book, ignoring the confused look the blonde man gave her. During all this time, Lin did not let go of Train and Train continued to look uncomfortable. While a part of him was happy the conversation had changed to something other than himself and Lin, he still knew that didn't change the conversation they needed to have. He glanced over at Anastasia who seemed to be amused by everyone in the room. When she felt Train's eyes on her, she smiled warmly and nodded her head. She knew what Train was about to do, and the cat was sure she was trying to give him the strength to actually do it.

"Lin… Can we talk? Privately?"

Lin looked up at his lover, not liking the look on his face or the tone of his voice, but nodded nonetheless. He took Train's hand as they left the room, then frowned painfully when he felt the cat pull it away as he left the room quickly. Lin paused for a second, then followed after him. A thought occurred to him and he turned around to address the rest of the group one last time.

"Sephiria will be here soon. She wants to talk to everyone about what happened with the Apostles yesterday."

Before he left, he glanced at Creed who had his legs pulled up to his chest, smacking Sergey's hand away every so often as he tried to read the book with Eve. However, he noticed the silver man was watching Train leave with an eager look on his face, which for some reason made him feel more anxious about whatever his boyfriend wanted to talk to him about.

Is he mad at me? Shouldn't he understand that I couldn't be there because of Chronos? Besides, Train can take care of himself. From what Rinslet described, it sounded like Doctor just got the drop on him and the whole night ended up amounting to nothing.

Lin followed his lover down the hallway and towards what he assumed was the back of the mansion. Train reached a door and stepped outside, holding it for Lin and waited for him to walk outside. He watched as the man tried to give him a loving smile, but was able to see the unease in his eyes. Train could tell he was worried about whatever they were going to talk about and felt his heart sink.

No. I need to do this. This needs to happen.

Lin walked over to the small gazebo he noticed a few steps away, figuring that was the best place for them to talk. Train watched him take a seat and waited for the cat to follow, but he found his feet didn't seem to want to move. Instead, he looked around the garden that the back of the mansion led to and noticed rows of dying roses throughout it. Train frowned sadly and walked over to a bunch that seemed to be in better shape. He knelt down and inspected them, smiling nostalgically as he fingered them delicately.

I wonder if Creed is going to try and tend to these while we're here…

A part of him hoped he would start receiving the roses again, but he refused to acknowledge that part of him right now. Creed had stopped giving them to him and he was beginning to miss it, but he understood why it happened. He was actually grateful his ex-lover put a stop to it because it gave him one less thing to worry about.

Creed has been doing a good job at being supportive of me and Lin and giving me my space. Yeah, he's slipped up a few times, but nothing that isn't easily forgivable. Anything physical that happened between us was started by me and with how badly he wants to be with me again, I can't expect him to say no.

Train glanced up and looked further down the garden to see if he could see the flowers he used to give Creed. He frowned when he realized that he couldn't, then sighed and stood back up. He turned around and walked towards the gazebo, knowing he was procrastinating too much and forced himself to approach his current lover. Train shook his head and tried to clear his thoughts, doing his best to ready his heart to break Lin's.

As soon as he sat down, Lin wrapped his arms around his neck again and pulled him in for a kiss. Train froze and kept his hands away from the number, eyes wide as he tried to search his brain for what to do. When Lin tried to deepen the kiss, Train knew that was enough and pushed him off. He gripped his shoulder gently and gave him a sympathetic look.

"Lin… We need to talk."

Number X frowned at his boyfriend and tried to kiss him again. When Train pushed him away once more, he felt his skin get cold and his heart began to quake painfully. "Are you… Mad at me, Train?"

"No." Train said responded quickly.

I'm mad at myself. Mad that I gave in so easily even when I knew I didn't feel the same way about him that he feels about me.

Lin's anxiety was beginning to rise again when he heard the tone of Train's voice and noticed he would not make eye contact with him. "Then what's wrong? Did something happen?"

Train sighed and ran his fingers through his hair, resting his elbows on his knees as he stared down at the floor. "So much…"

Lin cocked an eyebrow at him. "It's only been three days since I last saw you and everything seemed fine when I left. Does this have something to do with the Apostles? With what happened last night?"

Train shook his head. "No. Why would it have anything to do with that?" Seeing Lin pout at the tone of his voice, Train sighed again and regretted the way he just spoke. "Sorry… Didn't mean for that to come out so bitter."

"Train…" Lin leaned over and wrapped one hand around the cat's arm, the other running through his hair soothingly as he spoke. "You can tell me anything. It doesn't matter what you're going to say, I'll love you no matter what. Nothing you can say or do will even change my feelings for you."

Train glanced at the man from the corner of his eye and groaned quietly as he pushed his hands away. "I have a feeling that won't be true very soon…"

Lin felt himself beginning to shake a little and his heart was trembling so quickly that he thought he was going to pass out. His logical mind was starting to figure out where Train was going with this, but desperately didn't want it to happen. "Train… I love you…"

Train stared into Lin's somber, yet frenzied eyes and felt the world begin to spin around him. He had never done anything like this before, and it was proving to be the most difficult thing he had ever done. When he left Creed, he was so angry and justified in his reasonings that despite how hard it was to walk away from him, he didn't feel guilty. With Creed, his heart was broken and he felt empty and distraught, but it was not hard to leave him. Ending it with Lin made him feel guilty, which is what made this so difficult.

Just do it. Just get it over with. Dragging it out like this is only going to make the conclusion that much harder.

"Lin…" Train turned his body so he was looking the man in the eyes, understanding it was going to be painful to see how much he was about to hurt him, but knowing it was the most respectful way to do it. "Lin… I… I can't do this anymore."

Lin felt his body shaking even more, beginning to fall into denial almost immediately. "Do what?"

Train gestured between the two of them. "This. Us. I… I can't…"

Lin knew the tears were starting to form in his eyes and he shook his head. "Yes, you can. Why do you think you can't?"

Train sighed and scooted a bit away from the number. "No. I can't. I can't keep lying to myself, to you. I just… Don't feel the same way about you."

Lin took a deep breath to prevent himself from crying and tried to be a little more forceful with his words. "You haven't been lying to me. You've been honest from the beginning. You told me you weren't ready and I said that was fine. I said I didn't care. I told you I would wait for you until you finally returned my feelings."

Train frowned at him. "I've known you for almost a year now and nothing has changed."

Lin took another breath. "But we've only been official for a few a weeks! You need to give it time! We need more time. We can-"

"No." Train said firmly, wishing he had been this firm from the beginning. This all might have been avoided if he was. "No. It's not fair to you. It's not fair for you to be with someone who doesn't feel as strongly as you do. You deserve better, Lin."

Lin shook his head wildly and jumped forward to wrap his arms desperately around the cat. "No! You're exactly what I deserve, what I need, what I want! You can't tell me you feel nothing for me!"

Train sighed again and grabbed the man by his shoulders, pushing him away gently. "I'm not saying I don't feel anything for you. I'm just saying I can't keep leading you to believe I will ever be on the same level as you."

"But what if you get there?" Lin said, his hands wanting to touch the gunman so badly, but being held still by the very man he needed to hold. "What if you finally get there and we're not together?"

Train paused for a second, not understanding why he didn't see it was wrong for him to be with someone he didn't love. "We can't play the 'what if' game when it comes to something so sensitive…"

"That's not fair…" Lin said as he lowered his head, knowing tears were beginning to fall. "I told you my heart was going to be my responsibility. I told you I would wait! Why are you leaving me before we even got started?"

"Because it's better to end it sooner than later." Train added firmly.

Lin shook his head. "No it's not… I've already fallen for you… The best thing you can do for me is to be with me. Even if you don't love me…"

Train sighed and let him go again, but grabbed him once more when Lin threw himself at him again. "If you don't care enough about your own feelings to understand why it's wrong for me to be with you, then try to understand mine."

Lin sobbed quietly as he leaned forward and pressed his head against Train's chest. "I do understand your feelings… And I'm fine with it… As long as I can be with you, I'm fine with it…."

Train frowned at the man and shook him a little to get him to look at him again. "I don't think you do. You're so fixated on the idea of being with me that you're ignoring what I want."

The short man sobbed again. "Then what do you want, Train…"

The Black Cat lessened his hold on the man, but made sure to keep eye contact with him. "I just told you what I want…"

Lin sobbed again and cuddled himself against Train's chest. "Why don't you love me? What's so wrong with me?"

Train watched the man cry into his chest for a few minutes, but did not push him away. "I… Don't know. But, there's nothing wrong with you."

The number clung to Train's shirt and buried his face as deep into the man he loved as he could. "Don't I make you happy? Don't you enjoy being with me?"

Train sighed and patted the man's back. "I do… But not in the same way you enjoy being with me." He pushed the man away again, then cupped his hand on his chin to make sure he looked him in the eyes as he said his next words. "I care about you, Lin. This doesn't mean I hate you, this just means we can't be together anymore."

Lin sobbed again, his words shaking as he spoke. "Do you… Still want me in your life?"

Train nodded his head and smiled. "I can't imagine it without you."

Lin grabbed the hand that held his face and tried to give Train a pleading look. "Then just be with me… You can learn to love me, I know it."

Train sighed and let the man go, pulling Lin's hand away as he moved back on the bench they sat on. "Love isn't something you learn… It's something that happens."

Lin noticed Train look over to the side at the window where Creed was still sitting. The silver man had apparently been watching them and jumped a little when Lin looked at him. Number X narrowed his eyes and turned angrily back to Train.

"Does this have anything to do with him?"

Train felt himself blush a little, then turned back to Lin quickly. "No. This is all me."

Lin frowned and grabbed the hands that held him again, desperate for any contact from the man. "Then why has he been staring at us?"

Train glanced back over at the window, watching as Creed pushed Sergey away and gave the clarinetist a stern look. The swordsman looked over at Train again, smiling kindly which caused the cat to smile in return. Lin noticed the interaction and grabbed Train's face again, turning him back so he was looking at the shorter man again. Number X leaned forward and kissed Train frantically, hoping the cat would feel how much he loved him in the embrace.

It did not last long as Train pushed him away quickly and gave him a solemn look. "Lin… You can't do that anymore."

Lin narrowed his eyes at Train, knowing they were filled with tears as he spoke. "But Creed can?"

Train blushed, but shook his head quick enough that Lin didn't notice. "No. Why do you think this is all about him?"

Lin frowned and let out another sob as he tried to push himself back against Train's chest. "Because I know you still feel something for him. I know you spend every second with him when I'm not around and I know how desperately he loves you. You have a history with him and he's always with you. How am I not supposed to think this has something to do with him?"

Train sighed and pushed the man away again as he moved further back on the bench. "Because I can't be with anyone right now. Just because we're not together anymore doesn't mean I'm going to go running back to Creed. Especially not after what he did." He was surprised with himself that that was the last thing he listed as a reason why he couldn't be with Creed again.

Lin reached out to Train again and fell against his chest one more. "But there are still unresolved emotions between you two…"

Train nodded and decided to allow the man to cling to him for a little. "Right, and while that's one reason I need to be alone, it's not the only reason. This has nothing to do with Creed or you. This all has to do with me figuring out what I want."

Lin looked up, feeling a bit of hope return as he gazed into those golden eyes he loved so much. "Does that mean I still have a chance?"

Train blinked at him, suddenly feeling like he was talking to Creed and rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn't confusing the men. "I'm not going to say yes to that question."

Lin smiled a little, tears still falling from his eyes as he spoke. "But, you're not going to say no either?"

Train pushed the man away and stood up. "That's not a fair question and you know it. This whole thing started with me giving you what you wanted because I didn't want to hurt you, but now I ended up hurting you more than I ever intended. I'm not going to do that again."

Lin watched him stand, his heart screaming at him to wrap his arms around Train's waist and beg for him not to do this, but chose to remain seated. "But… You still want me in your life?"

Train smiled at him and nodded. "As long as you still want to be a part of it, I don't want you to leave completely."

Lin tried to smile, but knew it was weak. "I don't know what I'd do without you… I love you, Train. I can't have you out of mine completely."

And in the meantime, maybe I can continue chipping away at that stubborn heart of yours…

Train frowned down at the man, his face showing what he was thinking and sighed. "I'm not going to give you any affirmative statement towards your feelings for me. I can't. I refuse to keep giving you hope when I don't feel the same way about you."

Lin whimpered quietly, then nodded his head in understanding. "As long as you still want me in your life… I guess… That's enough… For now."

Train gave him another firm look. "Don't do that."

Lin frowned and looked sadly at Train. "Do what?"

Train rolled his eyes. "You know what I mean. Don't start speaking so open endedly. That's one of the things that got us here in the first place."

Lin sobbed again and nodded his head in understanding. "I'm sorry I pushed this relationship on you, Train… I know you blame yourself, but… I guess I could have been a little less manipulative."

Train frowned down at him. "Don't start apologizing to me. You're not the bad guy here."

Lin wiped his eyes with the back of his hands. "You can never be the bad guy…"

Train knew Lin didn't intend for him to hear that, but he did. His heart broke for the man, and he could tell Lin was completely destroyed. He was actually doing a pretty good job keeping it together, but Train had a feeling that was for his benefit. Chances were as soon as he was alone, he'd completely fall apart.

I appreciate his strength for trying to hide his pain from me, but that's not fair to him. He should be able to let it out…

Train was hurt too, but not for the same reason Lin was. He was hurt because he knew he broke someone else's heart, but he also couldn't help but feel a bit lighter. A part of him felt like he was being held hostage in the relationship and that Lin was preventing himself from finding someone who could give him what he wanted. Train wasn't going to tell him that, since he knew it would only make everything worse.

Which is why I decided to not tell him about Creed. He already thinks this is because of him and hates him for so many other reasons, I don't need to give him one more thing to hold over Creed.

Still, Train knew Creed was at least a part of it. However, he felt a lot better now that he let Lin go. He felt like he could breathe again, as if he was finally listening to his heart. While it still felt heavy from guilt at breaking Lin's heart and confused at what he felt for Creed, at least now it didn't feel like it hard to force itself to feel something that just wasn't there.

This wasn't a healthy relationship. I know he loves me, but that's not enough to keep a relationship going. And now… I feel like I can breathe a bit better.

Train looked over at the window again where Creed was. He smiled when the man made eye contact with him and waved kindly. Train chuckled a little when the silver man kicked his feet at Sergey and yelled at him again. Knowing Lin was still sitting in front of him, Train shook himself and turned back to the man. He was relieved to notice Lin didn't see him being distracted by Creed and let out a quiet breath.

The Black Cat frowned when he noticed how hard Lin was trying not to cry again and looked to the side where the living batch of roses sat. Wanting to make the man feel a little better, Train stepped over to the flowers and picked one that looked to be in the best shape. He walked back over to Lin and offered it to him, giving the man a sincere smile as he looked down at him.

"I never meant to hurt you, Lin. I hope you know that."

Lin looked at his Sweet Cat, then at the rose and smiled sadly, choking back another sob as he took it from him. "I know, Train… And I know you don't want to hear this, but I'm sorry I guilted you into this in the first place." He smelled it blissfully and locked eyes with Train. "...And I want you to know I still love you… I think I always will…"

Train sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. "Hopefully you'll be able to move on."

Lin shook his head. "You're addictive, Train. And you're already in my system. I'm not going to be able to just rid myself of you."

Train tried to give him a cheeky smile. "Well, hopefully you can detox from me and realize you deserve someone better."

Lin felt another tear fall from his cheek as he tried to smile warmly at the man who stole his heart. "I'll never be able to find someone better than you…"

Train frowned at him, his heart breaking again for the man and knew there was nothing he could say to that. He decided to look back at the window and noticed Creed, Eve, and Sergey were all looking rather seriously at something Train couldn't see. He squinted his eyes and tried to lean to the side a little, but made a frustrated noise when he saw that it didn't help.

"It's probably Sephiria." Lin said, noticing the Black Cat's strange demeanor and smiling lovingly at his useless tactics to try and see through the window. When Train gave him a confused look, Lin took a deep breath to try to make himself sound calm. "I told her what happened with the Apostles trying to take you and she wants to talk to everyone. I'm sorry, Train, but I had to. It's my job."

Train brushed his apologies away and nodded. "I understand. I'm not upset. We should probably go talk to her."

Lin shook his head. "You go. She knows I'm here and won't need to talk to me just yet. Besides…" He looked at Train, whined sadly, then looked out at the garden. "I… Need a minute."

Train frowned at the man, then patted his shoulder kindly, feeling his heart break again at the depressed whimper Lin let out. "Okay. Come back in whenever you're ready. You're always welcomed with us."

Lin nodded, but did not look at Train since he knew it would only make him cry again. "Thank you, Train… You have no idea how much your kindness means to me…"

Train stepped away from the man and back towards the house. Before he walked in, he looked back at Lin one more time and saw the man crying freely. He wanted to go back and comfort him, but he knew they would only make things worse. After all, he was the one that hurt Lin. Comforting him would only send him the wrong signals and most likely cause more pain.

He took a deep breath to regain his composure and stepped through the door. As soon as he stepped in, he looked down the hallway and say Belze standing at the doorway that led to the common area where everyone else was. Number II looked at Train and nodded his head, then turned back to the room full of people. The cat had a feeling Belze had his eyes on Sephiria, since that's pretty much where he was always looking. Train walked to the doorway, squeezing past the large man as he stepped back into the room.

As soon as he walked into the room, Sephiria stopped talking and all eyes fell on him. Train gave everyone a strange look as he slowly continued walking in the room. "I'm used to being the center of attention, but this is a bit ridiculous. Shouldn't we be listening to Sephiria?"

"Where's Number X?" Sephiria asked when he noticed the Black Cat was alone.

Train gestured to where he came from. "He's outside. He… Needs a minute before he can join us."

"Are you okay?"

Train turned to see Creed giving him a concerned look. He was still sitting on the bay window with Eve, but this time on the edge instead of against the wall. Train smiled at him and nodded, but did not give a verbal response. He leapt over the back of one of the couches, landing between Rinslet and Jenos and putting his arm around both of them. Rinslet rolled her eyes and pushed his arm away while Jenos gave him a strange look before scooting away from the weird cat.

Rinslet looked Train up and down, as if she was accusing him of himself. "Is Lin okay?"

Train frowned at her, then glanced out the window where the man in question was. "I hope he will be..."

"He will be. Number X is resilient." She looked at Train seriously, who squirmed a little under her stern look.

Do they all know what happened? Did Creed tell them?

Train looked at Creed who shrugged his shoulders and gave him an innocent look. That was all the cat needed to be assured his ex-partner didn't say anything, since he knew Creed went out of his way to tell him every little thing he thought of or heard or was told. It was his way of trying to gain Train's trust back, it was working.

"Heartnet, I know you were knocked out for most of it, but do you remember anything that happened last night?"

Train felt himself blush as he looked at the Chronos leader. "Wh-what do you mean?" He glanced at Creed quickly who was doing his best to stifle a laugh since he knew what the gunman was getting so flustered about.

Sephiria cocked an eyebrow at him. "With the Apostles. Do you remember anything?"

Train sighed in relief, then laughed a little at himself. "The only thing I remember after leaving the concert was walking a few blocks away and seeing a small, black cat."

Sephiria tilted her head in confusion. "A black cat?"

Train glanced at Creed and knew the man didn't tell them anything. It appeared as though he was erring on the side of caution since letting them know he and Creed talked about what happened, they might start asking other questions too. He gave the silver man a grateful smile and forced himself to look away when Creed blushed and smiled back.

"Yeah. I'm thinking that it must have been Aja since it hypnotized me. That was the last thing I remember before blacking out. With how long I was out for, I assumed it must have been Shikis bugs that put me under."

Sephiria noticed the looks he kept sharing with Creed and decided it was something she needed to question Lin about later, even though she knew it would make him uncomfortable to talk about the Black Cat's ex-lover.

The Chronos leader took a seat in a nearby empty chair, putting her sword on her lap which made the musicians in the room uneasy. "How can you be so sure it wasn't Aja that knocked you out?"

Train rolled his eyes. "I've experienced what it's like to be knocked out by Shiki's bugs before. You wake up like you're hung over and that's definitely how I felt when I woke up." He saw Creed give him a sad look and decided to add a bit more to his sentence. "It only lasts for a few minutes though."

Sephiria glanced at Creed as he breathed in relief. She looked back at Train to continue. "And based on what everyone else has said, it sounds like Shiki was there. So it makes sense that it was him." She paused and looked down for a pensive second. "That means that beast can change sizes."

The room was quiet for a second before Sergey attempted to whisper something in Anastasia's ear. "Eto okazyvayetsya yeshche boleye strannym, chem ya dumal…" (6)

Sephiria gave him a firm look as she spoke. "Sledi za svoim tonom. Vy zdes' tol'ko kak svidetel'." (7)

Anastasia smacked him with her cane. "Honestly, do you have no memory at all? Chronos speak almost every language. Just stick to one."

Sergey frowned at her, then leaned back into the couch. It seemed the musicians decided to gather on one couch, most likely to make themselves feel more comfortable in a room full of sweepers and assassins. Train couldn't blame them, but also hoped they knew they were all safe.

No one in this room will hurt them. Especially Sephiria. She always goes out of her way to keep innocent people safe.

"Yes, she can change size at will now. After fighting with her, I can also say there is a way to take her down."

Everyone looked at Creed, who decided to get the conversation back on track. "If you don't mind my overstepping for a second, Sephiria, but there really isn't much everyone else can say about what happened. Train was knocked out the entire time, Eve flew away with Anastasia before the fight even got started, and Sven, Rinslet, and Kyoko led everyone else away. No offense to them, but I'm the only one who can really tell you what happened."

Creed glanced at his sweeper friends to see if they were offended and smiled slightly when he saw they actually looked relieved. Chances were they were happy he was trying to take Chronos off their hands. Sephiria had been questioning them pretty hard, but Creed was really the only one who was able to respond. After all, he was right. He was the only one who was fighting Doctor and Shiki.

I'm also the only one that spoke with them. I'm not even sure anyone else noticed Allie Hue was there before they left. We ran off so quickly and we were too distracted by Aja they might not have even seen her.

Sephiria seemed to consider what Creed said, then stood up. "Then, if you don't mind, can we speak in private?"

Creed nodded and stood as well. "Should we go to-"

"-Not the garden." Train added in quickly, earning a confused look from Creed.

The silver man frowned knowingly at his beloved, then nodded in understanding and looked back at Sephiria. "There's actually a conference room in the mansion. Does that work?"

Number One gave Train a concerned look, then nodded at Creed. "Lead the way."

Creed walked past everyone in the room, giving Train an adoring smile before he left, knowing Sephiria was following behind him. The room wasn't far away, just up one flight of stairs and down another hall, but he still made sure to move quickly. He wanted to get this conversation over with so he could go check on his beloved again.

He implied he was okay, but I need to make sure. I also really want to know what happened with him and Lin. It's obvious Train broke it off with him and I know it's really none of my business, but still…

Once they were in the room, Creed took a seat at one end of the table and gestured for Sephiria to sit wherever she wanted. The woman did as he silently requested and set her sword on the table. Creed couldn't help but think she was attempting to be a bit intimidating which actually hurt his feelings more than daunted him.

I mean, really. Does she think I'm going to start something with Belze and Train in the next room? Not only would Train be angry with me, but Belze wouldn't hesitate to kill me. I'm also not about to take on the two strongest numbers by myself while pissing Train off.

"So…" Sephiria started off. "Start from the beginning."

Creed gave her a curious look and chuckled lightly. "Why do I feel like I'm at Chronos again?" He sighed when he saw her serious face and did as he was ordered. "Well, Train started it off correctly. One minute he was with us and the next he was gone. I found him falling asleep down an alley."

Sephiria narrowed her eyes at him. "Since when do you lose track of the Black Cat?"

Creed narrowed his eyes at her in return, but kept his voice calm. "I was… Distracted by my other friends…"

Sephiria could tell that was embarrassing for him to admit, but it actually comforted her to know he was beginning to care about people other than Train.

That shows he's capable of feeling human emotions for someone other than the Black Cat. And with how obsessed he is with him, it's significant to hear him admit he cares about other people. Maybe he really is changing…

She also knew he was probably calming down due to being with Train all the time. Also, without the influence of Chronos, his mind may have been working more clearly. Still, she was worried that he might not stay this way. After all, one of the reasons they concentrated so much of their efforts on him and gave him so many of their resources was to keep him under control.

Maybe it wasn't working how we intended… Maybe Creed just needed someone like Train to give him attention and a chance to make a life for himself. Is it possible we were actually hurting Creed or making him worse?

Sephiria shook her head and nodded at Creed. "Understood. Please continue."

It was Creed's turn to look curious now, but he did as he was told nonetheless. "After I found him, I saw the black cat he was talking about. We all witnessed it change size and turn into Aja. During the fight, I noticed her changing sizes slightly, but nothing as drastic from changing from the size of a house cat to a monstrous panther."

Sephiria nodded. "Did she get any bigger than she did the first time we encountered her?"

Creed shook his head. "No. But at least we know now she can control it."

"Doctor didn't command her to?" Sephiria's voice was concerned as she spoke.

"Again, no. It was almost like she knew what Doctor was going to say before he said it. I think their connection has grown."

Sephiria frowned. "That's not good."

Creed chuckled. "That's a light way of putting it. If it helps, nothing seems to have changed with Shiki's abilities. He was the one that told them to leave."

Sephiria nodded. "Doesn't sound like it was a well thought out plan. Which is surprising for Charden."

Creed smirked. "I don't think it was Charden's plan." Seeing the bewildered look from Number One, he continued. "Shiki seemed to think it was Charden's plan, but based on the way Doctor and Allie Hue were acting, I don't think it was true. As you said, Charden would have come up with something more thought out."

Sephiria widened her eyes slightly when she heard the woman's name. "Hue was there?"

Creed nodded. "Yes. She was the other reason Doctor finally left. Shiki departed pretty quickly after everyone ran off in the other direction leaving Kanzaki and Aja to fend for themselves."

Sephiria leaned forward and leaned on the table. "You said before you might have found a way to defeat Aja. Is that true?"

Creed smiled proudly. "Attack her quick and don't stop. I went at her pretty hard and didn't let up for a second. It gave her very little time to recover and caused Doctor to panic."

Sephiria frowned. "Don't you think he'll just give her more nanomachines now? To help her recover quicker?"

The silver man shrugged his shoulders "Probably. But, if you set a lot of numbers at her and tell them to never let up, it might still work. Besides, Doctor is attached enough to her that if he sees her hurting too much, he becomes too distracted to use his own Tao. I was shocked that he only used Aja to come after me."

Sephiria nodded in agreement, impressed with the man's ability to come up with a good, reasonable plan on the spot. "Guess that logical brain of yours is why you were able to create such a powerful terrorist group."

Creed frowned and lowered his head. "I'm sorry, Sephiria… I… I did it for Train. But, Train did it for the wrong reasons which is also my fault. And again, I'm sorry for that."

Sephiria watched the man's demeanor change and felt a pang of guilt for him. "Apologize by helping us."

Creed lifted his head and gave her a curious look. "Isn't that what I'm doing now?"

Sephiria sighed and rolled her eyes. "You know what I mean. I mean keep giving me information."

Creed's look did not change. "Have we not been?"

Sephiria was confused at first, then sighed in understanding. "You mean all the documents on the Apostles you've found…"

The swordsman nodded. "Yes. Hasn't Lin been giving them to you?"

"Yes." She said quickly. "Sometimes I feel like it takes longer than necessary. Do you know why that is?"

Creed felt himself begin to panic, but was able to push it aside quickly. "That sounds like a question for Number X. We give him everything as soon as we find it and he's often there when we do." Seeing she wasn't convinced, but not willing to have that conversation, Creed brought them back to the previous night's events. "Don't you want to know about what happened last night?"

Sephiria sighed, then nodded. "What other information do you have for me?"

Creed thought about it, then shook his head slowly. "Actually, I think that's it." He looked up at the ceiling and began counting on his fingers. "Shiki showed no signs of change in his abilities, Allie Hue was there, they all left pretty quickly, and Aja needs fast, repeating attacks to take her down. Is there anything else you want to know?"

Sephiria glared at him for his sarcastic tone of voice, but knew he was kidding and was able to push the feeling aside.

Honestly, he's turning more and more into Heartnet. Though, I guess that's a good thing since I know Train will never hurt anyone again let alone rejoin the Apostles.

"How sure are you that this wasn't Charden's plan?" Sephiria wanted to be completely certain of this before he came to any conclusions.

Creed made sure he looked in her eyes as he spoke. "Very sure. That plan was far too impulsive to be of one his. I think Doctor just got impatient and decided to go after Train on his own."

Sephiria nodded slowly. "...And what exactly do they want with Heartnet?"

Creed looked sick as he spoke. "...Nothing good, I'm sure… Doctor was constantly asking to use him for experience when we were running the Apostles together. He never said what those experiments were, but knowing Doctor… Nothing good."

Sephiria frowned and nodded in agreement. "Yes. If it's anything like that beast he created, I doubt it would be anything good."

A part of her wanted to question if Creed was holding something about Kanzaki back, but since this involved his precious cat, she knew he would never do that. He would do anything and tell her everything she wanted to know if it meant keeping Train safe.

Creed would never hold anything back when it comes to Heartnet's safety. I know he's telling me the truth.

"I know Charden is interested in getting us both back, but he's not so desperate to go through such a terrible plan. He's probably already realized we won't be joining them again and most likely wants us dead now." Creed frowned and looked out the window as he spoke. "Doctor has… different intentions with Train than Charden does."

Sephiria stared at the man as he became wistful while thinking about the Black Cat's future. "That's further proof this probably wasn't Charden's plan. While it sounds like Doctor wants to hold Heartnet hostage, Flamberg wants him dead." Seeing that only made Creed more anxious, she changed the subject slightly. "I must say… Knowing Kanzaki did something that was potentially against Charden's orders is promising…"

Creed nodded in agreement, but did not change the worried look in his eyes. "It shows a weakness in their order or leadership. Doctor has a lot of sway in that group. Both from the fear he instills in people and the power he wields with his experiments."

Sephiria raised her eyebrows. "That's good to know…"

Creed is starting to prove pretty useful to our cause. Maybe I should talk to him more about the ins and outs of the group. I just thought they would be completely different under Charden's leadership.

She knew that was true, but chances were Creed knew more about the people in the group than anyone else. "Creed… Would you be willing to talk more about the people in the group? It might give us more insight into how they think."

Creed turned his eyes back to her and tried to change his sad expression that was still on his face for thinking about what the Apostles wanted from his beloved. "Is there anything else you want to know about last night?"

Sephiria frowned at him. "Is there anything else you can think of that was important?"

Creed thought for a second, then shook his head and watched as Sephiria gestured for him to continue. He sighed and leaned back in his chair. "What do you want to know about the other Taoists?"

---

Creed and Sephiria were in the conference room for longer than he thought they would be. He ended up telling her everything about everyone in the group that he knew and they were talking for so long now, the sun was beginning to set. There were most likely a lot of new people now, but Creed divulged everything he could about everyone else. That included their background stories and how he found them.

When they finally went back, Creed immediately saw his beloved sitting on the large arm chair, pushing Kyoko aside in annoyance as the girl continued to try clinging to him. Eve was still sitting on the bay window reading her book, except now Sven had joined her, but he was staring out the window instead of reading with her like Creed had been. Anastasia and Aimee had not moved from their position on the couch and the older woman seemed to be engaged in conversation with Train whenever he wasn't pushing the teen girl off him.

Belze was still standing in the doorway, which made it difficult for Creed to enter the room, but he managed to squeeze by despite the large man blocking the door. He didn't see Rinslet, Jenos, Francisco, and Dae, but he noticed that Lin was back and staring longingly at Train. However, Creed was happy to see Sergey seemed to be paying attention to the number now, but it was more tame than when he harassed Creed. He also noticed that as soon as he walked in the room, Sergey looked at him and winked, seemingly forgetting about the depressed man sitting next to him on the couch.

Creed completely ignored him in favor of Train, giving him a sad look which his cat didn't have time to notice as he had to push Kyoko away again. Deciding to lend his love a hand, Creed took a seat in the armchair next to Train, giving the girl a dirty look which seemed to be enough to warn her to back off. She heeded his silent command and walked over to the window with Eve, crawling over the young girl so she could sit on the other side of her. Lin also seemed to be a bit relieved by this change, but was unwilling to do it himself or admit he was happy Creed did it.

I know how he feels. He wants to be protective of Train, but he's worried if he is, Train will hate him. Now that they're not together anymore, he needs to learn how to walk the fine line of annoying Train with your love and flattering him.

Creed had learned how to walk this line fairly well. He knew his beloved hated when Kyoko clung to him and would be happy with anyone for pulling her off him. It just happened to be Creed was the first to always notice and act on it. He thought that maybe now that Lin saw Creed scare the girl away, he would know it was safe to do that. When he saw the number give him a slightly angry look, Creed sighed and decided to stare at Train instead.

I tried to be subtly nice again and he pushed it away. Guess I can't blame him. He probably blames me for Train breaking up with him…

Belze made room for Sephiria as she entered and smiled warmly at her. Creed glanced over at the two when she walked in and noticed the exchange, giving them a small smile. He elbowed his Kitten to get his take on the encounter, then rolled his eyes and giggled slightly when he saw the confused look Train gave him.

I'll have to explain it to him later. That was almost too subtle even for me.

Sephiria did not sit when she came back, making everyone believe she wouldn't be there much longer. "I think we've taken up enough of your time. We'll be taking our leave soon."

Train frowned and checked the time on the large clock above the doorway. "Aww, so soon? But it's only been five hours! We didn't get a chance to catch up!"

Sephiria rolled her eyes, ignoring the cat in favor of Lin. "Number X, you are to stay here with everyone in case the Apostles make a move against them. I assume that's okay?"

Lin looked a bit upset at her statement, glancing at Train wistfully a few times before slowly nodding his head. "Yes."

Creed frowned at the man's reaction, looking at his beloved to see how he took that bit of news as well. Train looked uncomfortable, but I understood why he needed to stay. At least Sephiria tried to consider the number's feelings.

At that moment, Jenos re-entered the room from the kitchen, allowing some sweet smells to waft in which let Creed know where everyone else had gone and what they were doing. He was happy to see they were able to make use of the supplies he had stocked up years ago. Everything that was in the back of the kitchen wouldn't expire, so he knew it would all be fine to eat.

Sephiria nodded at Jenos as he walked back in the room. "Number VII will be staying as well."

"What?!" Rinslet said as she walked in behind him. "Why?!"

Jenos looked offended at the woman who was supposed to be infatuated with him. "Why must you hurt me, Rins?!"

Sephiria rolled her eyes. "We need more reinforcements here in case the Apostles attack. Belze will stop by every so often as well."

Sven didn't like where this was going and decided to question the woman. "Just how long do you expect us to stay here…?"

Sephiria cocked an eyebrow at him. "Why would you want to leave?"

Sven rolled his eyes. "Because this isn't our home…"

Eve flipped a page in her book as she spoke. "We move around so much, what difference does it make?" She looked at Sven over the book as he gave her a firm look. "Isn't what really matters is that we're safe? And this seems to be the safest place for us right now."

Sephiria nodded at the girl's statement. "Correct. Obviously, I cannot order any of you to stay here, but I can highly suggest it. It was a smart idea on Creed's part, and I agree this is where you'll all be safest."

Train gave her a curious look. "...And?" He knew there was more to her statement and wanted to coax her to say it.

Sephiria glanced at him as she spoke. "...And this way we'll know where you are too."

Train sighed and finished her sentence for her. "...And we can act as bait for the Apostles if necessary."

Sephiria looked away from him, as if she didn't want to acknowledge what he said. "That will be a discussion for another day and most likely with just you and Creed."

Creed frowned, not liking where that was going. "You're not going to use Train as bait."

Lin heard what Creed said and finally looked away from Train and at his leader. Sephiria saw the panicked look in his eyes and silently told him to get over it. Lin acted like he was going to do as he was told, but the way he looked at Train was proof that he did not like the idea of possibly using the Black Cat as bait either. Number One decided it wasn't her concern right now, since she knew Lin would do as he was told. Even if it meant possibly putting Train in danger.

Honestly, between him and Creed I don't know how Heartnet hasn't lost his mind. He's perfectly capable of taking care of himself. More so than pretty much everyone else in this room.

"You do not give me orders, Diskenth. As I said, that is a discussion for another day." Sephiria looked at Train who shrugged his shoulders. She had a feeling he would be fine with the plan and as long as he was on board, Lin and Creed would get on board.

"I assume you have enough food and space to keep going for a while?" Sephiria watched as Creed nodded and continued. "It's hard to say how long you should stay here for and as I said, I cannot order you to do anything, but I can order Jenos and Lin to follow you wherever you try to go."

Creed leaned back in his chair as he frowned at Anastasia and Aimee. "It also lets us keep you guys safe..."

Anastasia nodded in understanding. "You won't hear me complaining. Well… At least not for a week."

"A week may be all we need, but that's hard to say. It'll also depend on what the Apostles do during this time." Sephiria addressed the old woman as she spoke, then turned to Creed. "But, yes, that was my thought as well. If you all stay here, we'll know where you are if you need Chronos assistance and you'll be able to keep an eye on your… less capable friends."

"Hey!" Sergey said in offense, then was almost immediately over it when he remembered what Creed had to fight last night. "On second thought, scratch that. You make a good point. It'll also be nice to be around such handsome men for a while."

Creed smirked when Sergey poked Lin. The number didn't even glance at him, since he was still too clearly lost in his thoughts of Train. Sergey sighed and decided to change his lewd look back on Creed, which made the silver man roll his eyes. It looked as though the Russian man may have had something of an interest in Lin, but his crush on Creed didn't look like it was going anywhere.

I'm a lost cause, but maybe he can act as a rebound for Lin. I don't see him getting emotionally invested in Number X.

Creed turned back to Sephiria. "We'll work with a week for now and see where we're at after that."

Sven glared at Creed. "Since when do you make the plans for us?"

Creed returned his glare. "Since it was Train's life on the line and you were being difficult. You may not like that this used to be the Apostles hideout, but now that they're not using it, it's just a mansion. They won't think to find us here and there's plenty to keep us busy and alive."

Sven opened his mouth to say something, then quickly shut it when he realized it was not going to be a convincing rebuttal. He nodded in defeat, then leaned back against the wall on the windowsill.

Sephiria nodded at Creed then addressed the rest of the group. "We'll be in touch. For now, stay safe. Number X, Number VII? We'll send some men with your things."

She turned on her heel and left, Belze following soon after her. Once they heard the front door shut, Train stood up and stretched. "I don't know about everyone else, but I'm starving. Whatever Dae is making in there smells delicious."

Jenos frowned. "Hey, I helped!"

Rinslet smacked him. "You did not. You just got in the way."

Creed followed his beloved into the kitchen, trying to ignore the sad, angry look Lin was giving him as he passed.

Did Train tell him we slept together? Or did he figure it out on his own?

"I don't care who made it as long as I can have some!" Train yelled back at the fickle couple before he left the room.

Creed giggled as he followed his beloved. "If they didn't make enough for everyone, I'll make you something, Train."

Train smiled at him. "Or I'll make you something."

Creed pouted at his cat, remembering that conversation they had about his terrible cooking habits. "No thanks, Train. I'll do it."

Train narrowed his eyes at the man, not seeing the rest of the group had walked in after them, including Lin as he flicked Creed's forehead. "Is my cooking really that bad?"

Creed smiled fondly at his love. "I'll choke it down if it's for you, Train…"

Train rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. No need to sound so excited about it."

Dae overheard their conversation and stepped out from the back of the kitchen where she had been cooking and smiled brightly. "There's enough for everyone! You really did stock up this kitchen, Creed. Have a seat."

The group did as they were told, Creed making sure to sit next to his love, much to Lin's dismay. Creed did not care and went out of his way to ignore the man's angry looks all while smacking Sergey away and managing to flirt with Train every second he got. It may have hurt Lin, but that never stopped the number when he was with the Black Cat.

I'll take a little revenge tonight, then I'll be nice. I know how it feels to have Train leave you, but at least he gets to keep him in his life. I didn't for far too long afterwards…

Creed smiled peacefully at his Kitten as Dae brought the food in. He decided to forget that Train did not love him in favor of replaying the moment from this morning and last night in his head. He ate peacefully as he gazed lovingly at his Kitten, content in knowing he at least got to be with him one more time.

---

Train sat up on the roof, staring at the stars, trying to talk to any that seemed brighter than the rest. After a while, he began to realize that Saya was quiet tonight and accepted that she must have gone to bed early.

Well, it is past midnight. Guess I shouldn't have expected her to stay up with me. I should go to bed too. Nothing good happens after midnight.

After they finished dinner, Creed gave everyone a tour of the mansion. Kyoko and Train opted out of it, since every castle was laid out pretty much the same and they knew where everything was. As much as he hated spending any time alone with the girl, he wanted to be filled in on what happened after the concert. He talked to Creed about it, but since Kyoko was with Sven when they ran off, he figured she might have something different to say.

But she didn't and ended up just annoying me to no end. I should have known better.

He thought it was ironic how he was easily able to say no to her, but had a hard time doing it with Creed and Lin. It got him into trouble with both the men, but he was hoping that would stop now. As much as it hurt, he was able to finally end it with Lin and continued to tell him no. The number tried to bring it up again a few times, but Train knew it was really to try and convince him to rethink his decision and the cat told him no over and over again.

Luckily, Sergey started to take him off my hands. That might work out for both me and Creed. He's obviously still infatuated with Creed, but maybe Lin can be a distraction for him. And visa versa.

He was a little concerned if something happened between them that Sergey may end up getting hurt, but he struck Train as the type that didn't get attached too easily. That's what made his crush on Creed all the more confusing since it had been going on quite relentlessly for a while. However, Creed made it clear he wasn't interested, which relieved Train for some reason.

I'm pretty sure I know what that reason is, but I'm not willing to accept that as the truth yet. It's bad enough I almost let it slip the other night. That is why I ended it with Lin and gave into my sexual desires for Creed. Now I can finally work out what to do with myself.

Train was growing more and more confident that he knew what he wanted, it was just a matter of what came with following his heart. Anastasia was right about everything she said. It was clear he still had feelings for Creed, but he was trapped in his vicious cycle of both hating and loving him at the same time.

I need to talk to Creed about this too… But, not yet. Especially not after what we did last night and this morning.

Train heard footsteps approaching and knew it was the man he was thinking about. Without looking up, he waved his hand in the air to greet Creed, keeping his eyes on the stars above him. Creed walked over to his beloved and sat down next to him, pulling his legs up to his chest and resting his cheek on his knees as he stared at his beloved.

"Talking to Saya?"

Train sighed. "Trying."

Creed frowned. "Did I interrupt?"

Train shook his head. "No. She just doesn't seem to be in the talking mood tonight."

Creed giggled a little as he turned his gaze to the sky. "Sounds like you…"

Train turned to look at Creed from his lying position and cocked an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

Creed looked back at his love and smiled fondly at him. "You only talk when you want to talk. She probably just doesn't want to talk tonight."

Train sighed. "You're right. But she picked a bad night to ignore me. I really need to talk to someone."

Creed frowned. "You can talk to me…"

Train gave him a knowing look. "You know I can't talk to you about everything…"

The silver man sighed sadly. "What about Anastasia?"

"She's asleep." Train said quickly. "Otherwise, yes I would. She knew what I was going to do today as well." He then decided to ask the man a question. "Did you tell everyone?"

Creed shook his head. "No. Why would you think that?"

Train shrugged his shoulders. "It just looks like everyone knows…"

Creed nodded. "They do know, but I think they figured it out on their own. Or Lin told Rins and she told everyone else." Creed rested his head on his knees again and watched the stars dance in his beloved's eyes. "How are you doing?"

Train sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. "I'm fine, but Lin is another story…"

Creed nodded in understanding. "He'll be okay. He's stronger than you know."

Train turned his head to look at the man, ignoring the warmth in his heart that grew the moment he saw the moon bouncing delicately off his silver locks. "Could you cool it on the flirting? You're making it so obvious that even I know what you're doing."

Creed pouted at his love, but nodded his head. "Yes, Train. Sorry. I was being selfish."

Train rolled his eyes. "I know you were just getting a bit of revenge, but that needs to stop now. He's really hurt."

Creed pressed his lips in his knees. "I know that pain too well…"

His statement created a bit of an awkward silence between them that Train finally decided to break with a question of his own. "How… How are you doing?"

Creed gave his love a curious look. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, after last night… And this morning… Are you okay?"

Creed smiled lovingly at his cat and nodded. "I'm better than I've been in a while. It may not have been long for you, but I haven't slept with anyone since you. It was good to get it out."

Train blushed, knowing his eyes were starting to change color and looked away. "You know you could have been with Sergey…"

Creed rolled his eyes. "I can't be with anyone after you. You've ruined me, Train."

The gunman cocked an eyebrow at him. "You want me to say sorry?"

The swordsman giggled. "Never. In this case, you ruined me in a good way."

Feeling himself cool off a little, he rolled to his side so he could see Creed. "Do you want to talk about what happened again?"

Creed smiled and mimicked his love's position, happy to see Train was allowing him full view of his beautiful face. "I'd like to know what you were going to say this morning but refused to let out…"

Train blushed and gawked at him for a few seconds. "I-I… U-uh… Ummm…"

Creed sighed sadly and rested his head on the roof. "You know, bottling up your feelings can give you an ulcer, Train."

Train pointed an accusing finger at his ex-partner. "Don't even start with that. I'm working through my feelings on my own. That's why I'm flying solo for a while."

The silver man nodded and placed one hand under his cheek, the other reaching out to run through Train's hair lovingly. He smiled blissfully when he saw his beloved purr unknowingly, then giggled when he realized Train noticed he was leaning into the embrace and blushed. Train grabbed Creed's wrist and pushed it away.

"We can't do that, Creed." He whispered, more regretfully than he meant to.

Creed frowned. "Sorry, Train. Your eyes just don't echo what your mouth keeps saying… I'm still confused about what you want…"

Train sighed and looked at the sky, his voice still quiet as he spoke. "So am I…"

Creed kept his eyes on Train, etching the image of his beloved's plaintive face shining brightly in moonlight. "Train… When we… When we made love… How did you feel?"

Train blinked at the sky, then at Creed for his blunt question, his face turning a bright shade of red. "Wh-what do you mean?"

Creed sighed. "I mean… How does it make you feel when we have sex? What goes on in your heart?"

Train continued gawking at him, not sure how to respond. Seeing he put his beloved in an awkward position, Creed smiled and decided to voice his feelings in hope it might give his Kitten something to ponder on.

Creed sighed peacefully as he spoke his sweet thoughts to his love. "When we make love, I feel complete. I feel whole. It feels… natural to me. Like we're meant to be. As if when we lay with one another, it's right and we are doing a favor for the rest of the world. As if our coupling, our partnership, and love making turns the universe into a brighter place. I feel like fate shines down on us for those brusque, glorious minutes when we are together, letting us know we are doing something beautiful and virtuous. As if destiny is celebrating our love."

Creed smiled at his love, reached out and lightly caressed his cheek again. "When we make love, I feel like our souls merge and for a brief, beautiful moment and in that moment, we become one, resplendent, marvelous being. I feel the unmistakably exquisite bond between us strength and transform into an incomprehensible deity that only we are able to create with one another. A bond that only we can experience… That no one else in the world will ever be able to make a reality… Because only you and I can ever forge something that incredible and heavenly."

As he traced his thumb along Train's lips, he leaned himself a little closer, the rest of the world slipping away as he looked into his love's mystical eyes. "When we're together… I feel like we transcend worlds. We leave this planet and create one of our own. One where there is only us… and it's nothing short of utter perfection."

Train felt like Creed stole his voice with the beautiful words and all he could do was stare at the man, gaping at him like an idiot and wait for him to break the stunned silence he put the cat in. Still, he tried, but his shaky voice and uncertain words only made him sound even more asinine than he already felt at not being able to respond to that declaration of love.

"C-Creed… I-I… I-I d-don't… Wh… I j-just…"

Creed smiled and sighed fondly at his beloved. "You're so cute, Train…"

Seeing that didn't help his Kitten leave his stupor, the silver man leaned a little closer and whispered the next words in his ears. "I'm going to kiss you, Train. I can tell you want me to, but if you push me away, that's fine. I won't be hurt. However, if you accept this kiss, I want you to take it with you when you go to sleep and think about what I said. Think about how it makes you feel in this moment and after, and focus on just that. Don't think about it, just go with your gut. I hope if you do that, it'll help you find the answers you're searching for. Answers that only you can find."

Seeing Train nod his head unknowingly, Creed leaned closer and pressed his lips gently against his love's soft ones, lightly at first. Once he was sure Train wanted the kiss, he applied a little more pressure and slipped his tongue between his lips and into his mouth. As he massaged Train's tongue with his own, he wrapped his arm around his beloved's back and pulled him closer, running his other hand through his smooth, chocolate hair.

As he felt Train's body respond more, Creed poured every emotion he felt for his Kitten into that kiss. He gave the Black Cat everything he had in him, letting his beloved suck the life out of him. Creed willingly gave his soul to the beautiful man in his arms, hoping he would understand once more what they were meant to be, what fate demanded they be. He knew it was true and he knew there was a part of Train that knew it too. Right now, Creed could only hope this kiss would reawaken that realization in Train, or at least give him the answers only he could find.

Even if that means he comes to the exact opposite conclusion that I want, I hope he finds peace in this kiss.

When Creed finally pulled away, he gave Train the most loving look he could and caressed his face once more.

"Now, get inside before you get a cold. Honestly, Train, it's dead of winter and you don't have any form of winter wear on. If you get sick, I'll have to take care of you. And if that happens… I can't be held accountable for what ends up happening between us."

Before his Kitten could answer, he gave him one more kiss on the forehead, then stood up and walked towards the window. Before we left, he looked back and Train, memorizing how angelic his flushed face looked in the bright moon's rays.

"I love you, Train. I always will." He waved at his love before he left the roof, speaking his last words loud enough for the cat to hear. "Goodnight, my love."

---

Translations:

(1) "Another beautiful man infatuated with the cat. You're quite lucky indeed."

(2) "Sorry to be a disappointment to you, but my heart belongs to Train."

(3) "I've been told that before…"

(4) "I speak a little."

(5) "I'm starting to feel unoriginal."

(6) "This is turning out weirder than I thought imaginable."

(7) "Watch your tone. You're only here as a witness."