A/N: Thanks all for the reviews! That was a lot more than last time! Thankies! Here's the new chappie!

"Speaking"

'Thoughts'

Telepathy

Singing

"So when he gets older will he be glad we killed the man, or upset that we didn't wait and let Ran kill the jerk himself?"

"It depends on the mood he's in when we tell him."

"What makes you say that Kenken?"

"It's not that difficult to figure out. Once you know Ran it's really easy!"

"Are you saying I don't know him?" Omi demanded, a little upset.

"Of course not. Have you ever really paid attention to his moods though? And I don't mean 'Oh, he's angry; better not mess with him', or 'Wow, I think he smirked at me. He must be in a great mood!' I mean really paid attention to how he's feeling and acting?"

"If I did that you'd kill me."

"Would not!"

"Someone spending enough time to fully understand the intricacies that make up your fiancé? Yeah, you would."

"Fine, fine."

"I hate to brake up the argument when it's about to resolve itself, but we'll be going inside soon, and you two might want to keep your voices down when that happens," Brad interrupted monotonously.

Ken and Omi quieted down and followed the others inside. They were just getting home from their mission to kill Kekkan Jootai. Yohji pushed open the door and stopped.

"Come on, Kudou, keep moving."

"Shut up, Farf. Something happened here."

"What makes you say that, Yohji?" Nagi asked form near the back of the group. Yohji turned his head to see the teenager. When he had eye contact he explained.

"Well, there are blankets, crumbs, pillows, Tupperware, silverware, and markers all over the floor. Oh, and there's Ran's bear."

"Any sign of the chibi and his babysitters?"

"Not yet."

Everyone made it through the door before the full search had begun. After the entire downstairs had been checked meticulously the seven assassins headed upstairs. The stairs were an even bigger mess than the downstairs had been. There were blurs of color coating the walls, and it looked like they had been scrubbed to clean them. Schuldich laughed when he thought of how upset Crashers must have been to learn about that habit. He had forgotten that coloring on walls was a thing with every child in his family, and apparently so had Hanae. They reached the second floor and found it in the same condition as the first.

The people in question were found immediately upon reaching the top floor. All six were spread out over the living room, asleep. Naru had fallen asleep on one of the love seats, and Reiichi was asleep leaning against the table. Omi and Nagi both winced in sympathy at what the older man would feel in his neck and back when he woke up. Queen was stretched out between the coffee table and the couch. On the couch was Yuushi, who was spread across all three cushions. On his stomach was Ran. The toddler was lying on his own stomach on top of the blond man. All in all it was a cute scene.

"Should we wake them? I know that Reiichi at least would thank us."

"Kenken? Schu-niichan?" Both men turned at the sleepy mumble and found a blurry-eyed chibi staring at them and raising his arms to be picked up. Schuldich smiled and walked over to the couch, avoiding Reiichi, Queen, and Yuushi in the process. He picked the child up and Ran immediately put his head on his brother's shoulder and fell back to sleep.

"I'll put him to bed. If you think we should wake them up, then go ahead. They're the ones who fell asleep out here, so I see no reason for them to stay. Except Reiichi, he was probably working on something before he fell asleep." Schuldich then headed to Ran and Ken's room, Ken following.

The others exchanged looks, and tried to wake the Crashers team. Luckily it was fairly easy. Naru refused to do more than grumble at them and fall back to sleep, so they had to carry him downstairs and to his bed. The others woke up with more dignity and headed to their rooms on their own. Then Weiss said goodnight and each headed to his own bed.

"So, why are we only using three candles?" Yuushi asked. Omi and Naru looked up from the cake they were putting the finishing designs on. It had only taken about two hours to make the cakes. One was big enough for fourteen people to share, and the other was personalized for a toddler. Persia had been invited to the party, and Omi had been informed of what had happened the night before after Ran had received a piece too large for him. Somehow or another Ran hadn't gotten sick from it.

"Because he doesn't have enough lung power to blow out twenty-one candles at once. Besides, too many candles could be dangerous."

"How?"

"What if he shoves his face into the cake again?"

"He did that?"

"Yuushi! That was your birthday party!" Naru reminded him.

"Oh yeah… "

Omi shook his head and continued making swirls on the cake with the frosting. He was almost finished, but he didn't want anyone else walking in a taking a swipe of the frosting from the cake. Yuushi had done that, and gotten the job of cleaning all the dishes that night. They had more chores to do, but that wasn't near enough of a punishment for ruining the cakes Omi and Naru had been working on for so long.

"Why do you want a large number of candles so badly?"

"Well, technically he's turning twenty-one, and it's unfair to not let him have the full number of candles. We'd be gypping him of his candles."

"Yuushi, the last time we were present on his birthday we didn't even know it was his birthday."

"I know! And what kind of rotten friends would we be if we did that twice?"

"Calm down Yuushi. When he returns to his normal age we'll have another birthday party for him; this time with the correct number of candles."

"Hey, do you think he'll actually be three after today?"

"What do you mean?" Omi asked, looking up for the first time and looking Naru in the eye.

"Well, do you think the chemical will let him get older on his birthday? I mean, will he stay two even though he's got three candles? 'Cause the candles aren't what make the person older; that's just a representation of the age. So he could still be two even though we're calling him three, and- "

"Naru, stop. Breathe," Yuushi instructed, interrupting his younger team member. Naru took a breath out of reflex and then glared when the blond started laughing.

"Yuushi?" he said sweetly.

"What?" Yuushi managed to say around his laughter. Omi hid a smirk at the older man's naivete.

"Get out of this kitchen!" Naru then shooed the older man out with a broom. All three were laughing by the time Yuushi finally made it out of the kitchen.

"Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday dear Ra~an! Happy birthday to you!"

"And many more!" Schuldich and Yohji finished. Ran laughed in delight, and then his eyes lit up. He had found the cake. After that it was nearly impossible to keep him occupied while the cakes were set up and the candles lit. He blew out the candles quickly – a spit-blow – and went on the eating. [1]

"Ooh, wow! Who gave you that?" Yohji asked, recognizing the outfit Reiichi had picked out. Everyone had bought Ran two gifts each. One of the gifts he was receiving then. The other set were for when he returned to his own age – if he returned to his own age at all. The first set of gifts was designated for a toddler and the other for an adult.

Ran was sitting in Hanae's lap while she 'helped' him get the wrapping paper off of the gifts. [2] He had received a large number of toys, along with one or two outfits and more practical gifts. When the gifts were opened, they all played games.

After 'Pin the Tail on the Donkey' – which they let Ran win – they went outside and shot each other and passing cars with water guns. The games were slowed down and made easier for Ran's sake, but other than that, they were played the same as any other party involving assassins, psychics, and other secret organization agents and leaders would be played. After a few more hours the party started slowing down.

Ran was starting to get tired, and none of the adults had much more energy to spare, so the party came to an end. Ran was put to bed and the adults said goodbye to the 'guests' for him. When everyone had left the others all took their showers and headed to bed, thankful for the fact that Ran had had a good day.

About two weeks later nothing had changed. Crashers had been given a mission, as had most of Weiss. Brad had foreseen that he wasn't needed on the mission, so he volunteered to stay home and babysit Ran. He only hoped that he would do a better job at it than Crashers had.

The night went smoothly until it was time for Ran's bath. He was still too little to bathe himself, so Brad was bathing him. Brad was in the middle of washing his hair when he had to turn his back on the toddler for a moment. When he turned back he couldn't be sure, but it looked as though Ran had started to get bigger. He shrugged it off as his imagination getting the better of him – too much time with Schuldich and Yohji.

Then he realized that Ran was still getting bigger. He got up to get a towel, deciding that bath time had lasted long enough. He turned back to the tub and saw a ten-year-old sitting in the tub, blushing as red as his hair. "Ran?" The child looked up at Brad and blushed even redder. He seemed to be trying to hide his entire body behind his arms. Brad began to blush as well and held the towel out to the child, turning to face away from Ran so the child could get himself covered.

"Um… do I… know you?" Ran asked after drying off and wrapping the towel securely around his waist. Brad turned back around to face the redheaded child. The boy's violet eyes were wide with fear, embarrassment, and childish innocence. He also looked worried about something.

"Yes, we're actually really good friends."

"Then why don't I remember you?"

"You were in an accident, and that's effecting your memory."

"Oh. Who are you? Why am I here instead of with Kaasan and Tousan?"

"Tousan? I thought you called him Kouga?"

"He wants me to call him Tousan in front of people. How do you know?"

"You told me about it awhile ago. Come on, let's get you something to wear." Ran smiled gratefully and followed the precog into the bedroom Omi, Nagi, and Naru were still sharing. As he walked he told Ran everything he could about the situation, leaving out things like where the boy's parents were and what he was doing in the Koneko apartments. He also left out the fact that Schuldich was Ran's older brother, deciding that it would be better for everyone if Schuldich or Hanae told him.

"So… there are thirteen other people that live here?"

"Well, not quite. There's you, Yohji, Schuldich, Ken, Farfarello, Nagi, Omi, and me. Queen, Reiichi, Masato, Yuushi, and Naru are only visiting. They've been here the past couple of months. Hanae comes to visit from time to time, but she lives close enough that she doesn't have to stay over when she wants to see us."

"Wait, you said that I live here?"

"It'll be explained to you later. I'm not authorized to tell you about that."

"Hanae… that name sounds really familiar. Where have I heard that name before?" The last sentence was mumbled softly, but Brad still managed to hear it.

"I believe it has something to do with Kouga and your mother."

"You know?"

"Yes, but it's one of those things I can't tell you."

"Have I eaten yet today?"

"Not a lot. You refused to eat very much tonight. Why? Are you hungry?"

"Yeah, a little. Um… what should I call you?"

"Well, for the past few weeks you've called me Brad-niisan, but just Brad will work from now on. The others feel the same way, but you can ask them, too if you feel like it."

"Okay. Um… Brad-san?"

"Yes?"

"Do you have any Raman?"

"Yes," Brad responded, then he began chuckling. No matter what age Ran was, he seemed to have a thing with Raman noodles. For that matter, so did Schu and Hanae.

"What's so funny?"

"It's just that you've asked for Raman every meal for the past two months."

"I've been here that long?"

"Um… a little longer actually, but you'd better let Schuldich explain that to you."

"Is this more of that stuff you can't tell me about?"

"Yes. I'm sorry."

Ran shrugged his shoulders, then reached up to adjust the collar of the shirt he was wearing. At the age of ten, Ran was still just a little too small for the older clothes of Omi and Nagi. What was a T-shirt with a small collar for them was slipping off of Ran's shoulders. Apparently, Ran was a thin, bony child. "That's fine. Do you have the chicken flavored kind?"

"I think so… "

"Hey, we're home! Oh, Ran didn't wait up for us tonight?"

"I need to tell you guys something."

"Just a second, Brad. How's Ran?"

"That's what I need to tell you about."

"What? What happened? Is he okay? Was he hurt?"

"No, he's fine! When I was giving him his bath tonight he kind of… grew up."

"What do you mean?"

"When he went to bed earlier he was about ten years old."

"Wow. Eight years in only a few hours? If he keeps that up he'll be back to his normal age by tomorrow!"

"Ken, this is serious!"

"How? This is great! He's returning to his normal age!"

"And he can't remember any of us or what he's doing here."

"Uh-oh."

"Schu? Why's that bad?"

"He's older now. We can't just trick him into thinking his parents left him with a bunch of complete strangers. We're going to have to find a real explanation for where his parents and sister are. And we'll have to find an excuse for why he can't remember any of us even though he's been staying with us for five months."

"I told him he was in an accident that's effecting his memory."

"Well, that is mostly the truth," Queen said, coming up behind the assassins.

"When did you guys get home?"

"Just now. Masato and Yuushi are arguing about what they'll have for dinner, Naru is on the computer, and I believe Reiichi is writing up the report for King."

"We might want to tell them to keep it down. I don't know if you heard that part, but Ran is sleeping."

"I figured that since I didn't hear any yelling he must be. Don't worry, I already warned them."

"Good. Now, what are we going to tell Ran about his family?" Farfarello asked.

"I vote we just wait until he's old enough to remember it himself."

"Yohji! What if he gets back to his real age and still can't remember? Or if he stays at this age for awhile? If that happens, you're going to have to deal with his questions."

"Yohji raised his hands in a defensive gesture. "Calm down, Omittchi! I wasn't really serious."

"Can we deal with this later?" Nagi asked around a yawn.

"Good idea," Masato spoke up, startling everyone in the room. They looked over and saw the man leaning against the doorway, his arms crossed over his chest. "It's getting late, and we'll be able to deal with this better if we've slept on the problem. And before you ask, Queen, yes, I've eaten. Yuushi's already headed to bed, and I'm sure Naru will, too, once the other two get in there."

"You're feeling talkative tonight," Yohji quipped.

"Shut up, Yohji."

"RAN! It's time to get up!"

The redhead grumbled inaudibly and shifted slightly in his bed. When another yell didn't come immediately, he gave up the pretense and fell back to sleep. Ken walked into the room and rolled his eyes at the sight of a seventeen-year-old Ran, still sleeping soundly, his shoulder length hair fanning around his face. Even as a teenager Ran hadn't grown out of the habit of sleeping on his stomach. Ken mused that sleeping on his back must have become a habit after his family's death.

The brunette walked quietly over to where Ran was sleeping, slightly surprised that Ran wasn't waking up. The redhead awoke whenever anyone came into the room he was sleeping. When he reached the head of the bed he grabbed two handfuls of the pillow Ran was using. Then, while yanking the pillow away, he shouted, " RAN! Wake up!" Ran sat up in the bed, his violet eyes opened wide in shock and fear. Then he turned and saw Ken.

"You," he growled. Ken had time to notice that his glare wasn't half as deadly or scary when he was younger. Then the teenager jumped at him, and chased Ken all over the house. By the time Ken gave up and Ran caught him no one remembered why it was so important that Ran be woken up at that time in the first place.

When he heard that, the redhead grumbled and headed back upstairs to the room he still shared with Ken. He came back down a few minutes later dressed for the day. He had changed out of his sleepwear – an oversized T-shirt and boxers – into a pair of blue jeans and a dark red T-shirt that was more form fitting. Ken was having trouble deciding which made him want Ran back to his normal age more.

It was about three weeks after Ran had started getting older again. He had slowly begun to age, growing only about a year every three days. They had tried to convince him that he really didn't want to know what had happened to his family, and he had eventually accepted it. They had been grateful – until he told them that the next time he asked they had better tell him. After spending over three years with him, the original Weiss knew what could happen when he got his mind set on something. After a year the former Schwarz members were beginning to get a good idea, and Crashers had their own previous experiences to deal with. In short: Every person in the Koneko apartments was dreading the time when he would ask again.

Ran had begun working in the Koneko again, but he stayed in the back of the shop, trusting the others that he didn't want to expose himself to the rabid creatures also known as fangirls. He also had the horror stories the others had told him to keep him hidden. Farfarello's story in particular scared him. From what he gathered about the incident, a girl had choked the Irishman almost to death when she had hugged him. He had tried to get away without attacking her, but she wrapped her entire body around his. There were also about a million stories where one or another of the workers had been groped. Ran shuddered and hardened his resolve to stay hidden.

The flower shop was closed for two hours for lunch, so at eleven all of the workers headed next door for their meal and a break. After everyone had sat down at the table, Ran looked up and asked the dreaded question. "Where are my parents and sister?"

Omi and Nagi both choked. Schuldich, Brad, and Farfarello looked ashamed and about ready to kill themselves. Ken, Yohji, and Yuushi grimaced. Masato and Reiichi suddenly found the ceiling and floor very interesting, and Queen looked like she was about to cry. After a few moments of silence, Schuldich cleared his throat roughly.

"Can we wait until the meal is over? That's not really something that should be told over lunch." Ran nodded, and resumed eating. The entire table was subdued for the rest of the meal.

After the meal, Schuldich, Ken, and Queen sat down with Ran in the downstairs living room. Schuldich was about to start when Hanae walked in. Ran smiled at her. Hanae smiled baxk and turned her attention to Schuldich.

"Yohji called me. I'm here if you need any help."

"I've managed it before."

"He already knew the most of it at that time."

"True."

"Um… Hello? I'm sorry, but could you please not talk about me like I'm not here?"

"Sorry Ran. It's just that… this is difficult," Schuldich managed to say. Ran looked at the people gathered in the room in confusion.

"What's so hard about it?"

"Can I just have a second to collect my thoughts please?" Schuldich snapped. Ran's eyes opened wider and he nodded, shrinking farther into the couch. Schuldich winced at his reaction. "I'm sorry, Rannie, but this really isn't easy to say." Ran nodded, but didn't relax.

"Ran, you've been here for three weeks that you remember, correct?" Hanae asked.

"Yeah."

"And in that time you've… experienced some changes."

"Like growing up really fast."

"Right. The thing is… when I met you, you were eighteen."

"How?"

"That's part of what we need to explain."

"I just want to know where my parents and Aya-chan are."

Schuldich winced again and rubbed his head. "This is giving me a headache."

"Do you need Tylenol or Aspirin or something?" Ran asked, getting up and heading to the kitchen. Schuldich shook his head and Ran sat back down.

"I'm immune to all those headache medicines. I've taken them too much in my life." Ran continued to stare at him, waiting for an answer to his question. "Listen Ran, this is difficult for me, and there's no easy way to put it. I'm sorry in advance for how callous this will sound, but they're all dead."

"SCHULDICH!"

"Dead? How… ? They were… What do you… How can they be dead?" Ran finally managed to ask. Schuldich just shook his head, tears running down his face.

"I'm so sorry, Rannie. I am so sorry."

"They were in an accident. The house exploded while they were inside it. You and your sister were at a carnival, so you weren't killed. However, after the explosion, a car hit your sister. She was in a coma for about a week before she died as well."

"Why didn't I do something? Why can't I remember it!?"

"That has to do with your aging. You couldn't do anything because the debris from the house was trapping you. You can't remember because technically it will be another year before you have that memory."

"What are you talking about?"

"You work for an organization called Kritiker. It is your job to get the people the law is unable to touch for one reason or another. On one of your missions a chemical was spilt on you, causing you to get younger. About three weeks ago you finally started getting older again."

"So how old am I supposed to be now?"

"Last July was your twenty-first birthday."

"Yeah, okay. Sure. Now tell me the f****** truth!"

"That is the truth! Why would we lie to you like that? Huh? Do you think I WANT to see you upset?"

"How should I know? I don't even know why you care!"

"Because it's my job! I have a right to care about you!"

"Says who?"

"Our father!"

"What are you talking about!?"

"Kouga isn't your father! My father is! You're my brother; I'm allowed to care!"

"That's a load of bull! Tell you what, when you're ready to tell the TRUTH, come and find me! Until then, stay the h*** away from me!"

Ran then stormed out of the room, his anger visible on his face. Schuldich sat down, trembling. He didn't remember getting up, or when he and Ran had started yelling instead of talking, but that wasn't what was making him shake. His little brother had just rejected him. Ran had spent his entire time during the effects of that chemical, and for a few months before that, loving him. And now, because he had handled that wrong, his brother hated him.

A/N: How'd you like it? Was it good? Bad? Somewhere in between? I'm sorry I ended it like that, but my muses were begging me to leave it like that. The next chapter will be the last one, so there's a couple questions for this one. First is will Ran ever believe what Schuldich told him? Will he leave Weiss because of this? Is the wedding still on? You have to review to get me to continue! (and yes, I already know the answers to each question. Hehehe… )

To those of you who have read (and reviewed) to 'Family Secrets', you know how this one goes. You review for THIS CHAPTER and leave your email address (or give a signed review and let me go through the trouble of finding your email address via ff.net bios) and I'll send you a cookie!

[1] – You know how kids blow out their candles. They seem to spit all over the candle to get the flame out. Or is that just my little cousins that do that?

[2] – I love little kids, can you tell? They're such adorable little monsters! But anyway, if you've ever been exposed to them, you'll know that when they're as little as Ran is in this, they need someone else to take apart all the wrapping paper. Then you let the child pull off the last little shred, making the kid think that he's unwrapped it himself. (Or herself, sorry!)

Thanks to:

Dragon Shadow: I'm glad to liked the fight! Did this one live up to the last one? I'm really bad at verbal fights! I did email you, and now it's your turn!

KyraEnsui: Not as much of those two in this, but I hope you still liked it.

Koji-chan: Thanks for reviewing! I get lazy like that too! I agree wholeheartedly! I've been searching all over the internet, and I still can't find more than one or two fics with Crashers! V_V If you ever find any, let me know?

Yami Aibou: Glad you're still liking it! Was this good?

Bombay Kitty: You read the first one, too? Neat! I'm glad you liked it enough to read this one!

Kyra2: Yeah, I was getting anxious to have him killed off, too. I'm basing chibi-Ran off of my cousins and other little kids I spend time with! I love them all!

Brad: Look! It's an update! Please don't be depressed! I don't like being the cause of someone's depression… And don't worry, the next chapter should be coming soon. (and even sooner depending on the number of reviews I get. I don't ask for a particular number because the last time I did that I had to wait three months for the correct number. By the time I had gotten them all I had lost interest in the story! *v.v*)

Anime the Fallen Angel: The fight only lasted that long because Nagi kept healing the guy. It is kinda freaky, but they were really angry at the time, and they were also upset about the chemical's effects on Ran. Not to mention the fact that the man put a bomb in a teddy bear. Thanks for reviewing, and I hope you liked this chapter, too!