Disclaimer:  All I own is all I own.  Which doesn't include SH, but does include a cold.  Dang.

**

[Margarete]

            "Yuri's in the City of Darkness.  But he and Alice were separated somewhere."

            "They separated?" I said blankly.  That just didn't add up.  Why would they separate in this world?

            "How do you know?" Sharon asked as I sat back to let Keith sit up.

            "Mnemosyne brought Tiresias and me to the Graveyard.  By the way, Margarete," he said with a nod to me, "You were right.  I am the reincarnation of Tiresias, and it seems we're all reincarnations.  Except, perhaps, for Sharon."

            "Of course not," Sharon said.  She seemed offended by the very idea.  "Those who drink of Lethe drink damnation to their souls.  Unless they repent, they cannot be angels of God."

            Between what Keith and Sharon said, I was a bit confused.  "But what about Sarah and Alice?"

            "What about them?" Zhuzhen asked, leaning against his staff.

            I stood up and looked at Sharon.  The girl looked back at me calmly, self-assured.  She has a small, pleasant smile that would've looked normal on an adult woman.  "Well, on one side we have one of the highest angels of God.  On the other side we've got a woman who can deliver impromptu sermons."

            Halley grinned.  Yuri had often been the one receiving the lecture, which could end with a bible-bash if he fell asleep during it.  Some of the funniest lectures were on lechery—especially when Yuri tried to sneak peaks while Alice was looking in her bible.  Those usually ended in a good bible-bash.  "And most of her higher-level spells are based on religion," he added.

            "Exactly," I said.  "But then, somewhere in between there, we have them doing something equivalent to drinking damnation to their soul."  I let everyone think about the absurdity of it.  "How does that work?"

            Keith shrugged.  "How does a Catholic killing God work?"

            "But that wasn't really God."

            "So it's not really God now."

            "Yes it is!" Sharon insisted.  "And Sarah will repent for her lust."

            The lust again.  "Look, Sharon—"  I stopped myself.  She was a little girl, and just because she believed whatever the 'angels' told her, didn't mean I should get mad at her.  "You're saying Sarah lusted after Hyuga."

            Sharon nodded.  "She did."

            "And Hyuga is Yuri?"  This time I looked to Keith for confirmation.

            "Yes," Keith said.  "And that's something I have to tell—"

            "Just wait," I said, cutting him off.  "Alice loves Yuri.  Why is it so ridiculous that Sarah really loved Hyuga?"

            "God knew what was in Sarah's heart," Sharon replied.

            "Then prove it," I said.  "If he could tell what Sarah thought, what am I thinking?"

            "'Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God'," Sharon told me.

            I ignored the scripture reference and doggedly continued.  "Alice and Sarah have the same soul.  Do you think Alice lusts after Yuri?"  I was sure of her answer now; she knew Alice herself.

            But something odd happened.  She started to shake her head, but she stopped from doing so.  She seemed distracted, as though listening to something else.

            I grabbed her shoulder, forcing her to focus on me.  "It's a simple question Sharon.  You don't need his help to answer."

            "'Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding'."

            "I don't want a sermon, I want your honest opinion."

            "Margarete, that's enough," Halley said, coming between Sharon and me.  Sharon was looking down at the ground.

            "Look Sharon, I'm sorry."  I hadn't meant to get her upset, but some of the things she was saying…or that 'God' was telling her to say…were just pissing me off.

            "Of…that's fine…" Sharon still seemed ashamed, and I realized it was something 'God' considered wrong.

            "…Shall I continue?" Keith asked.  "This is something rather important."

            "Hope so," Halley said.  "You slept so long me and Margarete had to carry you.  For two miles."

            "Nest time we'll just ditch you," I said jokingly.  It had been pretty hard lugging him around though.  He was the heaviest one here.

            Keith glanced at me and frowned.  Oversleep seemed to have destroyed his sense of humor.  "Yuri was captured by the Darkness Clan.  He was caught trespassing in their palace."

            "What'd the kid do that for?" Zhuzhen demanded.

            Keith looked a bit uncertain.  "I think," he said slowly, "Regina was influencing him."  He tapped his fingers on the purple cloth of his suit.  "The problem is he resembles Hyuga so greatly they already know he's a descendent.  Hyuga betrayed the clan, so it seems Yuri could be put to death."

            I stared at Keith.  "Please say you're joking."

            "No.  However, it seems Yuri's in some luck.  Whoever caught him wants to keep him as a pet."

            "That's not lucky, that's demeaning," I said.

            "If he's kept as a pet, he's kept alive," Keith said with a great deal of patience.  He got off the ground, dusting himself off.  "And he has some hope of escaping.  Once he recovers."

            This immediately brought a frown from me.  "What'd they do to him?" Halley asked.

            Keith shrugged.  "I do not know.  At the least, they rendered him unconscious.  However, in the Graveyard, he was rather confused.  His mental state concerns me more than his physical health.  That was why Mnemosyne brought us to the Graveyard.  She wanted Tiresias's expertise on dealing with…Hyuga's odd behavior."  Keith actually smiled a bit.  "He was hanging upside down on a tombstone."

            The sad thing was, I could imagine Yuri doing the same.  It was an amusing idea.  "Why didn't she ask any of us?"

            Keith thought about it and shrugged.  "Perhaps Tiresias knew Hyuga best."

            "I knew him longest."

            Everyone turned to Halley.  He had a surprised expression as he asked, "Did I say that out loud?"

            "Yeah…"

            Nervously he laughed.  "Er, ignore that.  It just popped into my head."

            "You better not be hearing God too," I grumbled.  One angel was enough.  Sharon stuck her tongue out at me.

            "No, it's not that."

            "Don't go insane Halley.  We have enough to worry about," Zhuzhen said dryly, smiling all the same.  Halley shook his head and folded his arms.  He brushed his neck, like it was sore.  "So where is Alice then?"

            "He did not say.  I am not sure if he even knows.  He did say though that she did not come with him to the City of Darkness."

            "He left her?"  I said furiously.  If he had left her, he would be dead meat when I found him.

            "Alice could be anywhere from Tripura to the City of Darkness then," Zhuzhen concluded.

            "If we didn't pass her on the way here," I said, pointing out that Alice could have gone in any direction.  We wouldn't know.  And without Yuri, who stood out for his resemblance to Hyuga and fusion powers, I didn't see how we'd be lucky enough to hear rumors on Alice, unless she used Advent on someone, but that was unlikely.  How could we locate her?  I thought, and then turned to Halley.  "How far can you send a message?"

            "Telepathically?"

            "No, miming.  Of course I mean telepathically!"

            Ignoring my sarcasm, he answered, "A hundred miles or so.  I'm not that good at it…"

            "Well, let's see if it's good enough.  Tell Alice we're going in Tripura.  If she's here too, she'll stay put."  Even if she were nearby, it'd help.

            Halley nodded and closed his eyes to concentrate.  He stood still for a moment or so before reopening sky blue eyes.  "Alright, done."

            "Good.  Hopefully we'll meet her soon."

            As we walked, Sharon walked by Halley, holding his hand as he led her.  She leapt forward when she fell too far behind his longer stride.  Zhuzhen proceeded a few feet away from us, content to take in the sight of Tripura.

            Keith walked beside me.  Despite his oversleeping, he was wide awake, cheerful, and humming.  I smiled, wondering what old song he was remembering.

            "So you are not angry with me."

            "No," I said, surprised.  "Of course not.  Why do you think that?"

            "I had an interesting dream," he said.  "You nailed me shut in my coffin because I had as much emotion as a corpse."

            "Look, don't worry about what Aquila Rose said," I told him.  Why did he keep thinking about her words?

            His eyebrows rose in surprise.  "How do you know she said it?"

            "Halley told me while you were sleeping," I lied easily.  I had lied yesterday too when I told him I didn't remember what Aquila Rose had done.  Everything was there in my memory, including how rude she was to Keith.  But if I said I couldn't remember, Keith would understand that we had been two completely different people, nothing alike.  Now she was gone, and then things she'd said and done meant nothing.

            So why did Keith continue bringing her up?  Was he angered by what she'd said?  Was he angry with me?

            "Why are you sad?" the vampire asked.

            I looked up from the stretch of verdant grass into Keith's mossy green eyes.  "I'm not sad.  I'm just thinking."

            "Thinking is making you sad."

            "Stop bringing her up."

            "Does it make you uncomfortable?" he asked, concerned.

            "No, but it's pointless.  She's gone."

            "I know she's gone.  But I think what she said was important."

            "Important?  She was joking the whole time."

            "How would you know?" he said.

            "Even if she wasn't," I persisted, "she's gone now.  Good riddance."

            "'Good riddance'?" Keith repeated.  His tone rose with annoyance.  "She did not deserve to be destroyed."

            "She was a naive, selfish little fool—"

            "She had only been born that morning.  What did you expect?"

            "For her to be more like me."

            "Both selfish," Keith muttered, using an oath that startled me.  I'd never heard him swear like that before.  He walked off to join Zhuzhen.

            What had I done for him to call me selfish?  I thought about it and decided oversleeping had taken its toll.

**

[Alice]

            "And then I pounced him.  Sooo much fun.  Should've seen his face."  Fox Face wagged his tails, proud of himself.

            "You attacked Yuri?" I asked in disbelief.

            "Hyuga told me to.  Anyway, you should see the Chimera.  It's good, but the fusion's harder than the Seraphic Radiance."

            "Why?" I asked, leaning forward.  Fox Face was obviously getting into his story.

            "It's six partial fusions, one for each element.  It's insane, you have to keep all of them in line and in balance with each other or you lose the whole thing."  His chest was puffed up with pride, much as Yuri's was when he'd done something good.

            "Aren't you satisfied with yourself," I said with a wry smile.

            "It's the best fusion!" he exclaimed.  I giggled as he let his tails fly from side to side, whacking the bushes.  Then I leaned back and saw the sky.  I sighed.

            "Alright Fox Face, it's past noon and Yuri's not back.  Now stop trying to distract me."

            His tails stopped.  "But I was doing such a good job!"

            "Yes you were.  Now check in the Graveyard."

            Unfortunately, today Fox Face was in a stubborn mood.  He snagged a berry, chewing on it before spitting it out in disgust.  "He's fine.  Probably got drunk and its having a hangover right now."

            "Maybe," I conceded, "But just to be safe."

            "What, he still needs a babysitter?"

            I sighed in exasperation.  "Please, Fox Face…"

            "There's no reason to, he's probably just being an idiot and—"

            "Yuri Ivan Hyuga!"  The kitsuune flinched at the use of his true full name.  "You will go to the Graveyard, and you will check on your other half."

            Fox Face hung his had.  "Fine, I'll go."  He found a suitable resting place and then spun around, as a dog would.

            I laughed.  "What are you doing?" I asked in the middle of the third turn.

            Fox Face stopped, looking surprised.  He sheepishly looked down at his paws.  I could tell he'd done it unconsciously.  Strange; the kitsuune's instincts must be influencing him.  This time he simply lay down and went to sleep.

            Hopefully Yuri was having a hangover.  I couldn't think of any other explanation for his absence without envisioning him injured, maybe even dead.  No, he couldn't be dead.  Fox Face was still here, wasn't he?

            I tried to think of something else.  How long had we been in this world?  What were Margarete and Keith doing?  Had Margarete stolen Tyrving from him again?

            What were they all doing?  They had seen both Yuri and me disappear.  Were they trying to figure out a way to get here, or had they already come…?

            With some guilt I remembered I hadn't sent a letter to my mother in two weeks.  Of course, I hadn't because I couldn't; but she must be so worried about me.  Last time she had thought I was dead.  What did she think this time?

**

[Margarete]

            I gazed at the roofs of several tall buildings.  They glittered with gold, showing how wealthy their inhabitants were.  Still, I thought the City of Water had been more impressive.

            "How strange.  The Water class prefers the Water city," Zhuzhen said with some sarcasm after I expressed my opinion.

            "Hey, it was less gaudy than this," I said.  The whole place was sparkling yellow, although it was obvious not all of it was gold.

            "I don't like this place," Halley said slowly.

            "See?  Even the Air class doesn't like it, Zhuzhen."

            "What do you think Keith?"  Zhuzhen then remembered the youngest.  "And you, Sharon?"

            "The Water clan is closer to God," Sharon said.  It seemed that was her only criteria in deciding the better one.  Keith simply shrugged, uncaring.

            On the inside though, my curiosity was aroused when we found a large market place.  There were some buildings with stores, but most of it was open-air, stands of fabric and food and perfumes and incense and candles and—

            "Margarete, no," Keith said, pulling my jacket to keep me from the jewelry.

            "Please?  Just a few minutes—"

            "No."

**

            "…Persephone.   Persephone."  Slowly the summoner woke up and regarded Syth.  "Hyuga's…lover, at the moment…her name is Alice?"

              Still groggy from the sleep spell, the summoner tried to recall names.  "Yes."

            "Then we have a lead on Hyuga," Kain said.

            "You what?!"

            Syth glared at Kain and the illusionist smiled guiltily.  "We may have a lead," Syth corrected.  It was too late; all traces of the sleep spell's effects were gone and Persephone was eager to go.  She tried to get off the lumpy bed, but Syth easily pushed her back down.  "Hold on, Pers."

            "Where is he?  He's alright, isn't he?"

            "We don't know.  Like I said, may."

            The disappointment on her face was obvious.  "Oh.  I thought you'd found him."  She slouched, drawing up her knees.

            And now she's depressed, Syth noted unhappily.  It shouldn't affect her this much.  "I heard a message addressed to Alice, and the sender mentioned a Yuri.  The sender seemed to be a friend of theirs."

            "I see…" Persephone thought she knew who the sender was, remembering the blond boy she had fought.

            "From the message, it sounds like Alice and Hyuga have been separated.  He was telling her to stay in Tripura if she was there and they'd meet her.  She'd probably know where he is."

            She took a look around the room, seeing it was too impersonal to be anything but an hotel room.  "We're in Tripura, aren't we?"

            "Yes."

            Her whole face lit up.  "So all we have to do is track them!"

            She got up and shrugged on a small blue jacket.  Syth gave up on her caring about anything other than Hyuga.  Anyone, he reminded himself.  He's not a thing.

            "Hold on Pers," Kain said.  He clapped his hand on her head and Syth watched as Pers became a red-head with blue eyes.  Her clothing changed to an extremely short dress.

            "Kain, my clothing is fine," Persephone said, nervously tugging down the pants she was wearing.  "No illusions there."

            "But that's the current style," Kain protested.

            The illusion was riving her nuts.  She didn't like showing off her legs, and even though she knew it was only illusion, she still didn't like it.  "I don't care."

            Kain sighed and dropped that part of the illusion, choosing instead to play with her face so she'd be unrecognizable.  She ended with a more heart-shaped face, larger eyes, and less freckles.

            Syth groaned, knowing it was his turn next.  Kain could be insufferable when he was casting illusions, insisting on 'perfection'.  And, as always, Kain would bump his height a few inches.

            "Your hair and eyes always have to be disguised," Kain said, looking at the crystalline hair and odd gray color.  "Eye color?"

            "Bro…" Syth stopped, impulsively choosing a different color.  "Green.  Vivid green."

            "Hair color?"

            "White-blond."

            Kain frowned at the unusual request.  Only an angel would have that hair color.  But then, angels did come to Tripura on occasion, and were well-known for being generous with their money, which got them respect from merchants.  An angel could be useful.

            Once done, Syth looked in the mirror hanging on the wall.  His hair was a pure white, and the eyes were various shades of green.  The lightest shades rimmed the pupil and the darkest, a true green, were on the outside.  Kain had done quite well.

            Syth felt a pain in his chest and covered it with his hand.  He was only a third, if not nothing compared to what he had once been.

            Kain's face joined him in the mirror.  The illusionist was grinning, pleased with his new tan.  His hair was a light blond and his eyes violet, one of the more unusual colors.  "I thought the point was to not stand out?"

            "Says the one who wants to be an angel outside Eden."

            "That has a purpose," Syth said.

            "This does too.  It looks good."

            Persephone rolled blue eyes and grabbed both men by the arms.  "Come on, let's get going!"

**

[Alice]

            Fox Face rolled onto his feet.  I watched him closely, but I sensed more than saw his worry.  "Well…what's wrong?"

            His ears perked up.  "Huh?  No, nothing's wrong.  I told you, he's fine."

            I stared the fox down and told him, "Fox Face…you don't lie to a Demon Eyes."

            He appeared indignant, though his worry increased.  Was he worried for himself?  Maybe I had been wrong about Yuri's other half.  "I'm not lying to you."

            "Then tell me the truth," I said calmly.

            He was even more worried now.  He was worried about himself.  "He's fine."  Why was he lying?  Did he want Yuri to suffer?  I thought he was sympathetic to Yuri, but perhaps he was still angry.

            If he wouldn't tell me the truth I would force him to.  I stood up and told him, "If you don't tell me the truth, I am going to find Yuri and find out what's wrong myself."

            The kitsuune's eyes bulged out.  "No you are not!"

            "Then what's wrong with him?"

            "I told you, nothing!"

            I gripped my bible tightly and turned away from Fox Face, towards the City of Darkness.  "Then I'm going."

            "Alice!"  Fox Face quickly stood in my path.  I simply went around him and continued.  He caught up to me, trying to block me, though he didn't use any force.  "Alice, he's not in trouble.  Not that much."

            "So he is in trouble."

            "A bit," Fox Face said, still trying to slow my progress.  "It's not that bad."

            "What's wrong?" I demanded.

            "It's nothing to be worried about."

            Why was he being so evasive?  I finally lost my temper and shouted, "Fox Face, I'm going in that city and nothing you do is going to stop me!"

            Fox Face looked after me as I stormed towards the city.  I ignored his shouts and demands for me to come back.  They only served to quicken my pace.  His aura was changing now, becoming more determined, and—he wasn't—was he using magic?

            I turned around too late to block, but in time to see the dark-classed spell headed towards me.

**

Author's Note:  Misdirection is fun…

Kim, here's Margarete.  ::drags in a large cardboard box that is making suspicious thumping noises::  …and Keith.  It was the only way I could get her in.

**

Reviewers:

Darkness Angel:  Foxie and Ally?  That sounds kind of nice…^^

Greyfriars:  Yes, pumpkin pie can turn some guys on too.  I've heard vanilla, and I've also heard donuts.  (Mm…donuts…)

'Poisoned Instant Custard' could be the name of a band.  I'm referring to the ambrosia as the food (or drink?) of the Greek gods, which makes people who eat/drink it immortal.  They should have Zeus do endorsements for that instant custard.

-.-;  And now I'm hungry.

MikoNoNyte:  Hm…leaning a bit towards insecurity here…and it's not rhetorical because it has to be answered.  Sometime.

I thought that he might have been afraid of her because of when he first wakes up from his Graveyard visit.  To me it seemed like he was being a little abrupt and maybe rude to Alice.  If not afraid, probably suspicious.

The angel with wings is not referring to Koudelka.  On the other hand, now I'm wondering where there's an angel with wings from its head in Koudelka.  …Did anyone get my reference to Koudelka a few chapters back?

Cats are so much better than dogs.  But I get the feeling Alice is a dog-lover.  (Not in the bestiality sense.  Unless Fox Face qualifies.  Does he?)  Calicos are the best.  ^^

Yes.  Hyuga is listening to Regina.  I…hehehehehe…never mind.

::has Chesire cat grin, favorite grin::

And Regina has never wanted any harm to come to Yuri.  She just wants him, plain and simple.

Tiresias as 'gardener' will be explained later, but it has to do with how both men are connected (in my mind) with gardens.  Yuri had the garden with his father.  Keith…well…see, the Earth stone is in Nina's garden and the Earth stone is the same element as Keith and its even in his town, so….  .  Good enough for me.

Which is all good, but now I've got myself thinking about gardening yaoi.  I'm not even sure how to explain it, but Keith and Yuri rolling around in tons of flowers sounds very interesting right now…

Of course Foxie has the hots for Alice!  He's part of Yuri, isn't he?  ^^  Alice has an excuse for being in la-la land.  She was asleep most of the time.

Hey, this is not 'Torture the Reader'.  This is 'Torture the Muse'.  Regina's here to help.

Regina:  Ohohohoho…  ::brandishes cat o' nine tails::  Yuri  ^^

Margarete is on her way, along with Keith.  Hope you don't mind.  It sounds like Regina's getting impatient for Yuri.

::reads her response::  This might be the first time my response was longer than your review.

Mina Aino1:  Well, when you reach this chapter…Thanks for reading!

Seriyu-the-ice-dragon:  Glad you like it.  Is your name based off of Chinese mythology?  (I thought it was 'Seiryuu', but I dunno.)