Disclaimer: Once again, I do not own Shadow Hearts, nor do I own any of their characters. Wish I did, but I don't. The only characters I own are Persephone and Pan and Christopher (who will probably never be seen again anyways).

**

"Why can't things ever be normal for us?" Margarete complained. "So, that weird aura you guys were talking about…was that Sharon?" She looked curiously at the small girl who was still unconscious in Keith's arms. Margarete had never practiced any form of magic, so she had little ability to sense others' auras and was completely in the dark about what was going on with Sharon.

Alice shook her head. "Sharon's aura was very faint before, but it definitely wasn't it." She started suddenly, her eyes widening as she turned to Keith. "Do you feel that?"

The vampire blinked in confusion and then slowly nodded. "It would seem the aura is gone now. Perhaps Yuri and Zhuzhen took care of them."

"So, no more monsters?" Margarete was definitely crossing her fingers for no more. She'd had enough of the bizarre things for today.

"Well, they could be hiding, but…" Alice looked around, scanning the area. "I don't sense any."

"I am confident that there are none left," Keith said. "But we ought to be taking her to Koudelka," he said. His eyes were cast down on Sharon. "Her aura is still faint, but she seems fine." His voice had a tone of puzzlement.

It was confusing. Her actions might have been explained if she had become berserk, but that usually only happened when someone had finally snapped in the heat of battle. Sharon didn't have to fight, her monsters did that for her—and if she had been fighting long enough to go berserk, she almost certainly would've been injured. But the only mark Alice had been able to find on her was just a light marking of a wolf's teeth on her right hand. It hadn't even penetrated the skin.

Sharon had been acting like one of the monsters too—but why? Had she been possessed? Would they have to do an exorcism?

Alice shuddered as she thought about some of the things she'd said. 'I'm playing' and 'play with me'. Did the Bifronzes really think of killing humans as some kind of game or sport?

And since when had monsters been able to possess humans?

**

Zhuzhen had stopped struggling a while back. The frogs weren't harming him and it was impossible to escape the grasp of their many tongues, so he simply relaxed, saving up his strength.

He was brought out this with a feeling of pain as he simply landed on the ground and looked around in confusion. All of the frogs were gone, and so was the unsettling aura that had been lingering.

The kid might've found it. After all, he had dashed off, yelling something about the flute. Although, what on earth he'd been talking about, Zhuzhen had no clue. He quickly brushed himself off, scowling at the slime on his clothing before running in the direction he had seen Yuri run off in. He began trying to sense Yuri's aura, but for some reason, he couldn't. Kid couldn't have gotten too far…He felt his stomach sink as he remembered how suspicious everything had seemed, how he thought it could've been a trap. But…

No, the kid wouldn't let anyone kill him. He must just be farther away.

As he kept going in that direction though, he felt Halley's aura. It pointed in the direction of a side street that went past some stores, and felt very faint. Zhuzhen went in that direction. Halley might know where Yuri was, and at least then he would know where someone else was.

He was halfway to the end of the street when he saw both Halley and Yuri. He was surprised to see Yuri--after all, shouldn't he have sensed his aura as well if both were so close together?

Except-they were both lying on the ground, still. Yuri was face down while Halley was on his back. Both had blood all over them. Yuri was closest, and Zhuzhen quickly checked him first. He had been bleeding from the head, but it was already dried, and both his breathing and pulse seemed normal. Then Zhuzhen hurried over to Halley, not even bothering to heal Yuri. For one thing, the Harmonixer looked fine enough to him, despite the difference in aura, and for another, it looked like Halley was going to need all the help he could get.

Zhuzhen swore as he looked Halley over. He didn't know how the kid was lucky enough to have only scratches while Halley looked like hell. His right arm had been ripped open, so much that Zhuzhen could see some bone poking out. His shirt was torn and stained with blood; when Zhuzhen unbuttoned it, he found what looked like jaw marks on both his front and back; and also on the back was a whole cluster of bruises and small cuts.

Zhuzhen quickly concentrated on healing Halley and managed to at least slow the bleeding from the stomach and the back. The arm he was wary of playing around with. It was too badly injured, and if he healed it wrong, the muscle might heal wrong. Halley might not be able to aim with his slingshot anymore. It was too risky. Zhuzhen decided to go back to Koudelka and hope that Alice had come back as well. She had much more skill as a healer, and would be better able to heal it. For now, he tied Halley's shirt around his arm to keep the wound from bleeding so much.

Zhuzhen awkwardly picked up Halley and looked at Yuri again. He'd have to leave the kid here for the moment while he took Halley back. He didn't worry too much though. After all, the monsters were gone and he wasn't badly injured. It'd only be until Keith could come here and help, since Zhuzhen was sure he couldn't carry the kid alone.

**

Chris stared at them. She must have misheard. That couldn't have been what they said. "You said Sharon was-"

"Acting like a Bifronze," Margarete said again. Seeing the disbelief written plainly on Chris's face, she continued, "Alice says that Sharon's aura actually felt like a Bifronze's too, so maybe she was possessed or something."

Koudelka shook her head. She had been looking Sharon over, but since there was nothing physically wrong with her, there wasn't much they could do right now. Alice and Keith were watching over her, waiting for her to wake up. "A monster like a Bifronze can't possess people," she said. "Monsters lack the ability. Only a few powerful monsters can do that--and even then, the human usually has to agree to it."

"What human would agree to that?" Margarete asked incredulously.

Koudelka looked at her and said, "Albert Simon's soul contract with Amon."

"Who?" Joshua asked.

"One of Yuri's fusion souls," she explained to him.

Margarete was confused. "But that wasn't possession. It was a fusion. At least, that's what he said."

The older woman simply smiled. "I think he was just saying that to try and intimidate Yuri. But it wasn't true. Once he transformed into Amon, he lost all control over himself."

Joshua was a lot more concerned about Sharon than the topic of conversation, so he stood up and went to join Keith and Alice. Chris also was worried, but she was a little interested and pretty sure Sharon wouldn't be waking up any time soon.

"Hey…I've been wondering…are there any other Harmonixers? I mean, if Simon wasn't one…"

"Harmonixing runs in the bloodline. It's an inherited trait," Koudelka said. "If Yuri has any living relatives on his father's side, then yes. But I don't think he does. Harmonixing has been growing rarer and rarer. The last mention of it in any texts I've seen was…17th century, and just one man. The Hyugas have always had a narrow family tree, it seems."

"Why's that?"

Koudelka shrugged. "The usual reasons, I guess. People with unusual powers are usually called demons and are persecuted. The same probably happened to the Hyuga family. In fact-" she stopped suddenly and stood up. "Halley's coming. And Zhuzhen. I guess they must have met up."

"Really?" Margarete stood up as well in looked in the direction she was facing. In the distance, she could make out Zhuzhen, who held something heavy in his arms, but she couldn't see Halley. As they got closer, she suddenly realized that the thing he was carrying was Halley, shirtless.

Koudelka gasped and hurried towards the two as Margarete turned around and said, "Keith, go help Zhuzhen, he's carrying Halley."

Keith looked at her and then at Zhuzhen. He quickly stood and ran after Koudelka, taking Halley from an exhausted Zhuzhen. Taking in the wrapped arm and still bleeding stomach, he called to Alice, "He's injured."

"Margarete, watch Sharon, alright?" Before Margarete could answer, Alice was up and joining the four. She inhaled sharply when she saw how badly he was injured and said, "Set him down Keith."

As they came closer, Margarete quipped, "I'm surprised you could carry him without breaking your back, Zhuzhen!" But Zhuzhen didn't reply and she got a sinking feeling as they passed her and set him down a few feet away from Sharon. Whatever had gotten him had done a pretty good job. Chris looked like she was about to cry as she took in the injuries he'd gotten.

Margarete softly cursed and wondered what else could go wrong. Then she realized there was still one person missing. "Zhuzhen, where's Yuri?"

"He's back on one of the side streets, to the northeast. I think…Bellchase?" He shook his head. "One with a lot of stores. He's unconscious, but not injured except for a few scratches. I think he fainted."

"Bellchase?" Margarete had been through the town the day before and remembered seeing a street sign like that. "Alright, I'll go and see if I can wake the kid up." Even if there weren't any monsters right now, Margarete didn't count out the possibility of their return. They needed to stick together, or else who knew what could happen?

**

Headache. Yuri had a big, huge headache, and he didn't know why. Well, it was probably because he was sleeping on cold, hard ground, but why was he sleeping there?

And his head…even though it hurt a little, it also felt light for some reason…empty…

What had happened?

He sat up and then slowly went through the day. He'd woken up, then they'd gone to Alice's house after being chased, he'd taken a bath, then they went to have a picnic…and then the monsters…and Lilia…

His head…felt strangely empty…

He growled and his fist pounded the ground. He wanted to kill her. She'd done it, just like she said she could. She had taken all twenty of his fusion monsters.

"Hey, kiddo! You're already awake?"

Yuri looked up and saw Margarete, who was waving to him. He got up and she started walking to him, looking him over. "Well, you seem okay…besides the fact that your hair's got blood in it." She looked down curiously at his hands. Yuri followed her gaze and saw the dry, brownish red blood trapped under his nails. "Zhuzhen said it looked like you clawed yourself up, and I gotta agree with him. What happened?"

"I…Where are the others?" he asked.

Margarete looked at him, wondering why he'd just avoided the question. He seemed upset though, and she didn't want to harass him, so she answered his question. "They're all in the park. Halley's pretty bad right now, so Alice is trying to heal him." She remembered something and said, "By the way, Zhuzhen said he found him right by you. What happened to him?"

Yuri looked surprised, and then shook his head, feeling angry. Lilia must have attacked him. "I don't know. I must have fainted before he got here."

"You fainted?" Margarete said incredulously. Yuri found that the tone of her voice was irritating. "How on earth could you have fainted?"

"I don't know, you try having twenty souls getting sucked out of your body and let's see what happens!"

The blonde spy took a step back at this explosion. Boy, he is pissed off. Then she thought about what he had said. "You don't mean…your fusion souls?"

He took a deep breath and raked his hair through his fingers. "Yeah. Lilia took my fusion souls."

"Oh hell," Margarete said. This day just kept getting worse and worse.

**

Persephone showed her mistress the flute. Regina reached out and brushed her fingers against it, making it gleam with a red light as the fire monsters responded to her touch.

"So, you got it," she said. "Well done, Pers."

She only nodded and looked at the floor. Curiously, Regina touched her chin and made her look up. "What is wrong?"

"Nothing," she said, not looking at her mistress.

"What happened?" Regina pressed, now convinced.

Reluctantly, Persephone said, "I did…something horrible." She remembered the girl and added, "Two. I did two things." And she shuddered, knowing what she had done to her was unforgivable.

"Pers, I have trust in you that you did nothing more than was necessary."

The girl was necessary as a distraction, but… No. She would not mention the girl, it was something she'd rather not dwell on. "A boy. He attacked me. I should've gotten away. If I had tried, maybe I could've, without him hitting me. But instead I summoned one of the monsters from Hyuga, to scare him off."

"Which?"

"Lobos. But he attacked me, and the flute…I couldn't control…" Her eyes started tearing up.

"Persephone," Regina said. "Look at me." Persephone raised her eyes and looked at her, blinking back the tears. "You did only what you thought was necessary."

"I think I killed him," she whispered. She didn't know. As soon as she'd regained control she'd simply called Lobos off and came back to the tower. Persephone hadn't wanted to look.

"No. You would not. I know you too well, you would not have killed him." Regina made sure she looked at her, made sure she understood what she was saying.

"I lost control…Lobos was p-playing with him…" she started crying softly. "I was Lobos…"

Regina wiped away the tears with her thumb and said, "You would have stopped Lobos. I know you, Pers. Trust me. The boy is alive." When Persephone continued crying, she asked softly, "Why are you so concerned? All humans die eventually, if not today, then tomorrow."

"I'm human, too…half…would you not care if I died then?" she asked.

Regina, realizing her mistake, embraced Persephone then and murmured, "Of course I would care. I love you like a daughter."

"I love you as my mother," Persephone said in return, comforted by the answer.

Regina only smiled softly as she patted down Persephone's hair.

**

AN: Thus ends another short (thank goodness) chapter of my story. Quick question, do you prefer longer chapters (like the last one) or shorter chapters (like this one)? Or does it not matter?

OK…and on to the next question…what the heck is it with Sharon? Nothing (besides a bite, and being knocked out) is wrong with her physically! Why does everyone think she's in danger of dying?

Meanwhile, Halley, who I would say has a lot wrong with him physically, is being ignored. ::bonks her head into the monitor:: I swear, it's PLG syndrome here.

Yuri: PLG?

Poor Little Girl syndrome. I should've known better than to have both of them injured at the same time….

Yuri: By the way, can Koudelka heal people? I think Alice might need some help with Halley.

I really don't know…I tried looking up a walkthrough, but it sounds like in Koudelka they used scrolls for magic…I'm not sure…and I couldn't find any scripts for it either…

Yuri: You haven't played Koudelka?

No…In fact, I'm thinking that I might just have to ignore that the game exists. I don't understand it.

Yuri: One last question.

Shoot.

Yuri: Did you miss your muse?

Nope. I hired my own while you were gone.

Yuri: You WHAT?

Yuri, meet Sword, Staff, Grail, and Gold mask.

Masks: ::come out::

Yuri: ::stares at them and starts cracking his knuckles:: And what are you guys doing here?

Sword Mask: You are going to protect us, right Aegis? You said you would.

Hmm…I don't remember saying anything like that…

Masks: ::sweatdrop:: Please?…

Yuri: I'm gonna have lots of fun with you guys…::starts chasing them around the house::

They get along so well, don't they?

**

Reviewers:

Before I start, I'd like to say this: If I die in the middle of this fanfic, most likely it'll be because of a Raging Tiger and/or Dragon Wolf. Just so you know.

Out for Blood: I'm continuing, I'm continuing! And 'ar' does not sound like a roar.

Radical Rex: I hope this is fast enough…and why does everyone think Sharon is going to die? I don't think I said she would…

Um…information? I just want to know what kind of spells Koudelka can use. And if you know where a script for Koudelka is online, that would be nice too. Because I'm wondering how Koudelka knew Yuri, to contact him.

Gutterfiend: Yep, Yuri's pissed. The whole Regina issue is really complicated, so that answer might take a while to get too…

And thanks for the compliment.

Greyfriars: Sharon's fine (for right now). I always did wonder what the heck Margarete was doing in China. Wouldn't it make more sense to meet her in Europe?

Somehow it's a lot easier to picture Roger Bacon living under someone's bed than Albert Simon.

Delka: Persephone is a bit scary, isn't she? But there's more to her…Thanks for not giving me a flame.

YES! One person is concerned for Halley! YAY!

Once again, read and review!