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IN SAFE HANDS

By: Anime Angel~^0^

Jim felt a hand on his shoulder and whirled around, almost knocking over all of the contents lying on the tiled sink in front of him. He had been standing in the bathroom for about an hour, just staring into the smudged, cracked mirror before him. Now he realized that Gene had probably been looking for him, and apparently he was right. There, standing lazily in the doorway, was the redhead, his arms now folded.

"Aniki?" For a moment Jim felt a frightened lump form in his throat. How long had his aniki been standing there? "What--"

"Jim...I need to talk to you." The words came out almost as a demand more than a request, but the outlaw didn't seem to notice. Instead he narrowed his eyes at the boy in front of him, and pushed a stray piece of fiery red hair out of his eyes. "I need to know what is going on!" he demanded, for about the fifth time that week.

"Aniki, I'm really tired and--"

"And why are you tired?" Gene snapped, causing Jim looked up at his partner in shock and shake his head.

"It's just all the work..."

"Or could it be those nightmares you've been having? Maybe the fact that you've been waking up scared outta your ass the last few nights? " Finally, a very defeated blond let out a sigh.

"Yeah, I guess so...but..."

"But what? Jim, I know you hate it when I act like your keeper, but you have to tell someone what those dreams are about. This is starting to get a little out of hand." The outlaw paused for a moment, and then continued. "I mean, look at you kid! You're a complete mess!"

Jim tried to push past his partner, but didn't get far before a large, scarred hand pulled him back into the bathroom.

"Aniki, let me go."

"I don't think so." The boy suddenly found himself being sat onto the counter, and soon Gene was right next to him, his long legs dangling over the edge. "Okay, here it goes: You always nag me about how we're partners and all, and I am supposed to always tell you where I am, what I am doing, and who I am with...even if it is another girl." Jim only nodded, his blue eyes glued to the floor. "Well this goes the same way. We're partners, and so I expect you to tell me when there is something wrong...like now!" The outlaw grinned. "I may act like a dumbass, but that doesn't mean I am one."

"Coulda fooled me," Jim said, a small smile on his lips. He thought for a moment, before meeting his partner's gaze. "Look...you promise you aren't going to tell anyone?"

After a moment, Gene nodded. "Sure...I feel like a psychiatrist here..."

"And you promise not to make fun of me?"

"Yeah yeah..."

"And if you do....do you promise to dance on a table butt naked in front of the girls with the words 'I am a sleez' written on your chest?"

"Yeah -- wait a minute! I don't know if I wanna agree with that one..."

Jim punched his partner in the side. "Good enough I s'pose." He turned back to the floor, running through all that he could say... "Well, first off, they're all the same." He shifted positions, so that he was looking directly into Gene's dark eyes. For the first time since the nightmares had begun, Jim noticed that his partner was sincerely worried about him, which was rare for the outlaw. What was it he had once said? 'I don't care 'bout nobody or nothing...' But then again, that had been so long ago...and it was before Jim and Gene had become so close to each other. The two were like brothers now, and almost inseparable.

"And...?"

"And--" Jim was about to go on, when something flickered in his aniki's eyes. The worry in them...it all seemed too familiar to the boy. An image of a younger Gene suddenly pushed its way into his mind...a younger Gene with that same, worried stare. "Oh no..." he murmured, his eyelids suddenly growing painfully heavy.

Suddenly Jim's head began to throb, and his vision began to blur as he felt himself start to black out. Soon Jim was slipping off of the counter, his mind reeling with images that he had been seeing in his nightmares...images of the men, the alley, and then... Aniki?. A piercing jolt of pain shot through his head as it connected with the cold, hard tiles, and he let out a small yelp of pain.

"Jim! What the hell?!" Immediately the outlaw was at his younger partner's side, picking the now limp boy off of the floor. "What happened? Jim!"

"Aniki..." Jim moaned weakly. He looked up at the outlaw with teary, unfocused eyes. "It's happenin' again....and I ain' even sleepin'..." he slurred, his eyelids closing.

"Dammit," Gene swore, pulling the boy into his lap. The kid's breathing was slowing again, just like the night before, and soon the young blond was gasping desperately for air. "C'mon Jim, snap out of it!" But the boy only squirmed in his older partner's lap, whimpering and coughing...

"Gene! What's goin' on?!"

Thank God, Gene thought, motioning for Aisha, who was now standing in the doorway, to come over. "I thought you guys were all in Cailor City....aw never mind! Help me here would ya?!"

"What happened?" the Ctarl Ctarl exclaimed, kneeling next to the semi conscious Jim. " Suzu and Mel dropped me off to call home, and as soon as I walk in the house I hear yellin'!"

"I dunno..." Gene carefully pulled the boy close to his chest, and squeezed past Aisha into the hall. As soon as he was there he put Jim back down on the floor, and proceeded to pry open his eyelids. "That's...weird...."

"What?"

"Look at his eyes... It's like he's looking around!"

"What?!" Sure enough, Jim's bright, sky blue eyes were moving side to side, and every once in a while rolling back into his head. "Jimmy! Wake up!"

"Already tried that Aisha...it's not gonna work."

"Well, what do we do?" The Ctarl Ctarl shook the blond slightly, but when she got no response she began to shake harder.

"Aisha! It is NOT gonna work--"

"I KNOW THAT! BUT WE GOTTA TRY!"

Gene shook his head. His younger partner was getting worse, and there was nothing he could do! The outlaw was one to take action...not sit and wait -- especially when it was Jim who was in trouble. The boy's breathing was becoming more and more broken, and Gene wasn't sure what to do about it. What could he do anyways? It wasn't like he had stopped breathing...

"GENE! He's awake!!"

Sure enough, as Gene looked down at his younger partner, Jim's eyes shot open, almost as wide as they could go with fear. He gasped for air, coughing and hiccuping as he began to hyperventilate.

"Ani...niki....Aniki...."

"Hey buddy, it's okay," Gene whispered, as softly as possible. Jim let out a small sob beneath him, and threw his arms around the outlaw's neck. It caught Gene off guard for a moment, but soon he was hugging the boy close.

"Hey Jimmy...you okay?" Aisha wrinkled her whiskers in concern. "What in hell happened to ya?"

Jim only turned to face her with wide blue eyes. "I d...d...dunno....I--"

"I don't think that they're nightmares anymore," Gene finished. His usually happy and fun filled eyes were dark and grim."Jim, I want you to tell me what you saw, and I want you to tell me now...before anything else happens." Jim only nodded as his older partner picked him up off the floor, and carried him toward the living room.

To be continued....

*Well....that was not LONGER than the last one, but I figured this was a good stopping place. Hope you liked it! And if not, hopefully I will do better in the future...thanks to those that e-mailed! Let's see, there was Anikishi, Hanmyo, Airhound, DJ LA, *goes on in background* AHEM! Okay, all done. Anyways, thank you so much! I love getting e-mails. Found any mistakes, spelling problems, grammar? My e-mail's right here...so tell me! anime_angel95052@yahoo.com Oh come on. Don't be scared of me! ^_^ Just drop poor lil me a line... Also, DJ LA e-mailed me and has been posting my fanfics at Hawking Enterprises...so go and check them out!