A/N: Yay! I'm back, and I got reviews!!! YAY!!!! ^^ Thanks to everyone who reviewed for the last two (?) chapters! In other words, thanks to waking dreams, Anime the Fallen Angel, gonyos, KyraEnsui, Dragon Shadow4, Phox1, Manx16, Kyra2, and Yami Aibou. It is much appreciated and the only thing that keeps me writing this fic! …All fics really. If you write, then you know what I mean. NEways, on to the story!

'Thoughts'

"Speaking"

Telepathy

"Pease?"

"No!"

"Why?"

"Because we don't have enough time or money!"

"Why?"

"Because we haven't been paid in a few weeks."

"Why?"

"Because we haven't had a job in the last few weeks."

"Why?"

"Because we've been watching you."

"Why?"

"Because you might be attacked again."

"Why?"

"That's what we're trying to figure out."

"Why?"

"Ran?"

"Huh?"

"Go to sleep now."

"I don' wanna."

"But you're tired."

"Am not."

"Then why'd you yawn?"

"Wasn' a yawn."

"Mm-hmm. You're getting sleepy."

"Am not." Ran rubbed a hand across his eyes, trying to stay awake. It was about a week after the attack, and Ran had reached the age of five. Schuldich was currently trying to convince his tiny brother that sleep was a good thing. The redheaded chibi had woken up around five that morning, and hadn't had a nap all day. Sometime between noon and three – Yohji's breakfast time – Ran had seen a commercial about Disney Land. The child had immediately grabbed hold of the idea and begged everyone in the Koneko's apartment building to take him. So far, all of Crashers and most of Weiss had caved and were trying to talk the remaining holdouts into granting him his 'one desire'.

Schuldich was one of those holdouts. The others were Omi and Brad. Yohji would have been among them if he hadn't been the first to agree with the chibi. By the time nine had rolled around, most of the household was sick of hearing about Disney. However, Ran was still adamant about going.

"Tell you what: If you go to sleep, and sleep until at least eight tomorrow, we'll go to Tokyo Disney the day after that, okay?"

"Promise?"

"Cross my heart!"

Ran giggled at the face Schuldich made to accompany his promise. Then, holding to his end of the bargain, the child rolled onto his stomach – his preferred sleeping position – and fell asleep. Schu smiled at his little brother. Ran was so innocent, especially as a child. Then he grimaced. How was he going to tell the others that he had finally caved and promised his brother that they'd go?

"You WHAT?"

"Come on, Brad! It's not like he's been sleeping very much lately! How is he going to stay asleep until eight?"

"That's not the point!"

"Then what is?"

"How are we supposed to protect him if we're in the middle of a crowded theme park?"

"One of us will be with him at all times."

"What about when he has to use the bathroom?"

"One of us will go into the restroom with him. Queen and Hanae are the only females in the group."

"And if he wants to go on a ride that we're too big for?"

"We'll send Omi, Nagi, or Naru with him."

"They'll be too big, too!"

"Not if we say that Ran has some kind of medical condition that makes it necessary for him to be watched at all times."

"And who would believe that?"

"Come on, Brad! It's the only thing he's asked for the entire time he's been getting younger!"

"Only because he hasn't been five for very long."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"In another few days he'll want every toy he sees advertised on TV!"

"What makes you so sure of that?"

"I had a younger sister."

"Oh. Where is she now?"

"Finishing Junior High. In America."

"You never talk about her."

"I don't visit over there."

"Any real reason for that?"

"I'm an assassin and my mother knows about it."

"Isn't that a good thing?"

"She could be hurt if she knew any real information about my whereabouts. I call every few months to let her know I'm alive, but that's about it."

"Does your dad know?"

"He died a few weeks after Krys was born."

"Krys?"

"Short for Krystal; my little sister."

"Ah. I'd like to meet them some day."

"You will not go into their heads to find out about my childhood."

"Of course not. Does that mean I can meet them?"

"When Ran's gotten back to his own age and the lovebirds have gotten married, yes. I'll take you to visit my family while they're on their honeymoon."

"Neat. But back to the original subject. I don't think Ran would approve of our putting a leash on him; even as a child he has a short temper. So what are we going to have to do to get your approval of letting him out of the house?"

Brad closed his eyes and shook his head. He didn't like talking about his family, but he had hoped that it would get Schu's mind off of their impending trip to Disney. He finally relented and agreed that it would be okay if they went, so long as Ran was in sight of at least three of them at all times. Schuldich responded saying that he had planned on the number watching him be four or five at a time. Brad just shook his head again.

"KAASAAAAAN!!!!!" Schu jumped out of bed at the high-pitched scream. He ran out of his own room and into his younger brother's. Ken had his arms around the child and was trying to quiet him. The tiny redhead had his face buried in the brunette's chest and was sobbing.

"Rannie? Rannie, what's wrong?" Schuldich asked gently. When he looked to Ken for answers, the younger assassin just shook his head, indicating that he didn't know either. Schuldich walked over to the bed and lifted Ran into his arms. The child continued crying, but he was already beginning to calm down. "Come on, Rannie. What is it?"

"I- I want Mommy!" [1] The chibi sniffled. Schu's own eyes teared up hearing that statement. He hadn't even considered that Ran would want his mother after a nightmare – because that was obviously what had woken the child up.

"It's okay. Shhh… It's okay, Rannie. She isn't here right now, but it'll be okay."

"But she died!"

"What do you mean?"

"I saw her! Schu, Mommy and Daddy were dead! Then Aya-chan died, too!"

"Oh, Rannie… It'll be okay." The child nodded, believing that Schuldich wouldn't lie to him. He allowed himself to be lowered back onto the bed before sitting back up.

"Schu!"

"What is it, Rannie?"

"Can we please still go to Disney?"

"Only if you fall back to sleep right now."

"'Kay." Ran rolled back over again, and was sound asleep again in a few more minutes. Ken and Schuldich exchanged a smile before Ken lay back down as well and Schuldich left the room. When he got out the door, he found everyone but Brad waiting for an explanation. Schu shook his head and told them what had happened. Weiss left, knowing that it was taken care of. Crashers took a little more convincing, but they were back in bed as well after another few minutes. Schuldich sighed as he lowered himself into the bed he was sharing with Brad.

The oracle rolled over to face the German man. "Care to explain one more time?"

"Ran had a nightmare. Actually, it was a memory."

"Oh?"

"He saw his parents and sister the day they died."

"After they had died?"

"Yep."

"Is he okay now?"

"Yeah. When I put him back to bed he was worried about whether or not we were still going to Disney tomorrow."

"We'll need two vans."

"I rented a bus."

"When did you have time for that?" Brad questioned, sitting up in bed.

"After you agreed that we could take Ran and before I came to bed."

"That was maybe twenty minutes!"

"You aren't put on hold when the person thinks you're important."

"And why would anyone think you would be important?" Brad asked, sarcasm dripping from his voice.

"Hey, at least we'll all be in one vehicle!"

"Fine, fine," Brad managed to say around a yawn. He was too tired to argue any further with the telepath. "Good night."

"'Night, Braddie."

"Are we there yet?"

"No."

"Are we there yet?"

"No, Ran. I just told Schuldich."

"Are we- "

"Don't even start, Yohji."

"I have to go to the bathroom!"

"You should have gone before we left, Naru."

It was the next morning, and the fourteen Kritiker agents were in a bus on their way to Tokyo Disney. Hanae, Brad, Reiichi, Queen, and Masato were hard-pressed to keep the other nine agents in line. They were all acting like their usual immature selves, and, added to Ran's current state, that made it a tiring trip. It was three hours and four rest stops into the drive when everyone really started getting antsy.

"If Ran was at his usual age, this wouldn't be a problem."

"What makes you say that, Brad?" Reiichi asked, curious.

"On our trip up to Villa White when we first joined, Ran managed to keep them all silent during most of the trip. There were only a few instances like this one, and that was a ten-hour trip."

"What about the way down?"

"He had a cold, so no one messed with him. He was in a pretty bad mood at that time."

"How did he get sick?"

"He fell into the lake. The lake was still mostly frozen."

"Wow."

"What was he like when he was with you?"

"He was more relaxed than he seems to be now, at least from what the eight of you have told us about his usual attitude."

"I'm HUNGRY!"

"I told you to eat breakfast, Yuushi."

"You didn't say that we wouldn't stop! I thought we'd at least get a snack!"

"I wanna eat, NOW!"

"Ran, be polite!"

"I wanna eat now, please."

"Close enough."

"So, you want four rooms?"

"Yes."

"For tonight?"

"And tomorrow."

"Alright."

"In a suite."

"Okay." The clerk at the hotel gave an amount that, had they had any other profession, would have made their eyes bug out. As it was, they simply handed over the money requested and took their things to their rooms.

The suite they had received had four bedrooms, two bathrooms, and a living area/kitchen. The males of the group would be sharing two to a bed, and two beds to a room. The females, who would have the fourth room, would each get their own bed. Ran, Ken, Schuldich, and Brad were sharing one room. Yohji, Farfarello, Omi, and Nagi were sharing the second; and Reiichi, Yuushi, Masato, and Naru were sharing the last room.

They had decided that, since the trip had worn the mature ones down, they would spend the night in a hotel and go to the theme park the next day. After spending the entire day at the amusement park, they would need to stay another night just to get their strength back.

As he was putting his things onto one side of the bed he was sharing with Brad, Schuldich felt a small tug at his pant leg. He looked down and saw Ran, holding a stuffed bear and looking up at him.

"Hey, Rannie! Where's you get the bear?"

"It was in the living room."

"Do you like it?" Ran looked at the white bear, crinkling his nose a little.

"I like brown better."

"Then you wouldn't mind if I took him somewhere else?"

"Nope!" Ran held out the bear and Schu smiled.

"So, what did you want, Rannie?"

"I'm hungry again."

"Well then, let's go see if Queen and Oneechan will give us something to eat, ne?"

"Hai!" Ran left the room and began his search for the two women of the party. Schuldich looked down at the bear in his hands. He didn't want to be paranoid, but something felt… off about the toy.

"Nagi?" Schuldich called. He didn't have to wait long for the telekinetic to answer.

What is it, Schuldich?

Would you come in here for a minute?

What's this about, Schuldich?

I need you to help me with something. Please?

Give me a minute.

Thanks.

Less than a minute later, the teenager walked into the room. "Yes?"

"Would you… dispose of this?"

"Even you can walk to the trashcan, Schu. Besides, aren't you the one who used to be on the basketball team?"

"That's not what I meant. You your powers to crush it." [2]

"Why?"

"I'm getting a bad vibe from it."

"Okay… "

"I'm not crazy!"

"At least not certifiably."

"True."

Nagi concentrated on the bear, and with a Bamph the offending toy was gone. However, Schu noticed that Nagi was looking concerned. "Nagi?"

"It wasn't supposed to make that sound."

"What sound was it supposed to make?"

"More of a 'poof'."

"Than what was that?"

"That's what it sounds like when I use my powers to crush bombs."

"Crap!"

"Where'd you get it?"

"Ran found it in the living room area."

"Do you think that man followed us here?"

"I have no idea. But… let's not tell the others. They'd just call the trip off, and with our being so close, that would just be cruel. Ran has his heart set on going. More so now than yesterday."

"I agree. But we have to keep and extra close watch on him tomorrow."

"Agreed."

"Come on!"

"Ran, you've ridden this one five times already! And we've only been here… forty minutes!"

"But it's fun."

"Do I have to ride it again?"

"Don't worry, chibi. I'll ride it with you," Yohji promised, taking the child's hand and leading him to the line for the ride. Schuldich fell onto a bench, exhausted. They had been at the park for less than an hour, and Ran was already wearing him down. When the ride was over, Ran was finally persuaded to leave the spinning Teacups.

"How long can it take for three men to use the restroom?"

"Keep in mind that one of them is five."

"Still. It shouldn't take this- "

"AAAHHHHHHH!!" Hanae and Queen ended their conversation when they heard a pained scream come from the bathroom. They were about to head in to see if something had happened when Naru walked Ran out of the bathroom. The nineteen-year-old looked caught between sympathy and laughter.

"Naru! What is going on in there?"

"Yuushi got caught in his zipper." Naru handed Ran off to Hanae and headed back into the bathroom, chuckling and wincing at the same time when another scream pierced the air.

"But I'm big enough!"

"Sorry, kid, but you have to be this tall."

"Will you let him in if two of us accompany him?"

"Why two?"

"One of us can sit on either side of him to keep him from falling out."

"Look, he has to be three inches taller before he can ride."

"Why does three inches make such a big difference?"

"It's the rules."

"But- " The man shook his head again, and Ken looked down at Ran. The child looked like he was about to cry. Schuldich!

Ack! What?

Could you convince this guy that he wants to let Ran ride? I know Ran can handle it, but he's three inches too short.

Give me a sec'.

"Alright, but don't tell anyone." Ken looked into the man's face, and saw the telltale glaze over the man's eyes, showing that he was under Schuldich's control.

"Thank you." Thanks, Schu.

The next day, the fourteen agents were, once again, piled into the bus. This time, they were headed home. Ran was still exhausted from the previous day, and had almost immediately curled up in Yuushi's lap and fallen asleep. Everyone was careful to let the child sleep, so the ride was quiet. So quiet, that by the time they had gotten back to the Koneko, the nine 'younger' agents were all asleep. The older ones were awakened when they got back, but the younger ones were carried inside and put to bed.

After they were all asleep, the older ones sat in the downstairs living room and talked, comparing shift stories. By the end of the day, it was agreed that the funniest was Yuushi getting caught. When the tea and coffee was finished, they rinsed out the cups and other dishes that had been used and headed up to their own beds.

A/N: I don't know how different Tokyo Disney is from our Disneyland and Disney World, so I'm saying it's the same basic thing. Oh, guess what I realized a few days ago? I've got a timeline now! Two stories following the same alternate universe creates a timeline, right? Right? If so, I've got my own timeline! YAY! I've always wanted one… always being the last two years. (That's about the time I started getting into fanfics)

[1] – I don't know what the Japanese translation of 'Mommy' is. 'Kaasan' translates to 'mother' as far as I know, but I don't know if it's used for other, less formal, ways of addressing mothers as well. Same as Tousan and Daddy.

[2] – For my purposes in this story, he can do that.