Author's Note: Here is the conclusion of Yamato and Takuma's arc. I like how this turned out. I already want to get started on next week's halo. I have the idea and the pictures in my head. I am itching to get started right away. All I can say is that it is going to be pretty twisted. So look forward to that. For now, enjoy this week's halo.

Halo Fifteen: Takuma:

-December 16th, 2012-

She was supposed to have been home hours ago. Takuma took a little bit longer with her paperwork that night. Something about one of the patients suffering from an injury on one of the orderlies' watch. She was the one to notice a bruise on the patient's arm. So, Takuma had to fill out the paperwork as a witness. Her wrists were sore by the time she finished typing the information. The therapist sat back in her chair. She was starting to see why no one really wanted to work at Chou Mori. Takuma would've left herself but the patients needed her here. She entertained the thought of getting them transferred to better mental institutions. That would take a lot of paperwork and red tape. But that would be for their well-being. Takuma was going to at least try.

She had just left the office and locked the door. Takuma walked down the hall. The therapist was halfway there when something caught her eye. She cocked her head to the side.

"Yamato-kun?" Takuma asked. She walked over faster when she noticed the terrified look on his face.

"Yamato-kun! What happened to you? What's wrong?" she asked. The boy was trembling as he stood. Takuma ran over and pulled him into her arms. Yamato about collapsed with big eyes. He looked so pale.

"Oh my! Are you okay? What happened to you?" Takuma asked. Yamato was about to speak.

-November 1st, 2015-

Takuma was stuck sitting in her armchair. Yamato held her at knifepoint.

"Yamato-kun, what are you doing?" Takuma asked.

"Shut up!" he barked. The therapist started to tremble. She didn't get a chance to react when he telepathically forced her back into the apartment. He held out his hand and flung her body into the chair. She couldn't get up if she tried.

"Why are you doing this, Yamato-kun?!" she asked. "If it's money you want—" The tadpole kind of laughed.

"Money?" he asked. "I don't want your fucking money!" Takuma started to speak.

"I said shut up!" Yamato shouted. He smacked her across the face with his free hand. Her glasses fell on the floor. Takuma whimpered. Tears formed in her eyes as she rubbed her cheek. Yamato sneered at her. He had a crush on her once upon a time? So pathetic.

"Stop crying!" he shouted. "You're going to give me a headache!" Poor Takuma could only stare up at him, praying that he would kill her. Yamato rolled his eyes. Joy Division in his head kept him from snapping right away.

To the center of the city where all roads meet, waiting for you

To the depths of the ocean where all hopes sank, searching for you

I was moving through the silence without motion, waiting for you

In a room with a window in the corner, I found truth

However, there was a slight hang-up in his plan. Madoka stood on the roof of her apartment building, looking down on the city. She happened to look up and see Yamato walking across the street alone.

"Hm?" she asked.

Don't try to stop me!

Madoka froze. Why? He didn't answer her. The sight tadpole narrowed her eyes.

"Yamato," she said in a stern voice. "Where are you going? What are you planning to do?" He didn't answer at first.

Yamato? Yamato?

Don't interfere. I have to do this. He didn't say anything else after that? Madoka tried calling out to him but it was no use. A sour feeling formed in the pit of her stomach.

"Come on, don't do anything stupid," she said under her breath. Madoka pulled out her phone and made the text.

"Somebody needs to stop Yamato! He's gone rogue!"

She only hoped that she could reach someone in time.

Midori was at a Halloween party when her phone buzzed. She pulled it out at the bar and looked at the screen. She tilted her head.

"Oh…" the time tadpole said. She turned and looked for her friends. They were too busy dancing, drinking, and flirting around. Her friends weren't going to notice. And besides, Yamato could make things worse for them. Midori stood up and slipped out the back way of the club.

I just got a text about Yamato. What's going on?

I saw him walking down the street. I tried to get him to stop but he told me not to interfere.

What is he up to?

I don't know. He wouldn't tell me. I'm worried he's going to do something bad.

Okay, where is he now?

He's heading toward an apartment complex just outside of Ikebukuro. I'm keeping track of where he is going now. Please hurry. I don't like what he is planning to do.

"Okay, thank you," Midori said aloud. She dashed down the alleyway.

Meanwhile, the tadpoles were all crowded around Shingo and his laptop. By now, all of the tadpoles heard what was going to happen. Madoka managed to track down the apartment where Yamato was heading. Shingo had a feeling of where exactly Yamato was going.

"What exactly are we looking for?" Yukio asked.

"Well, there was a case worker who looked after Yamato when he was in Chou Mori," Shingo said. Yamato's patient files lay open next to him. The other tadpoles looked confused. Suddenly, there was a low rumbling noise behind them. Everyone looked up to see a black hole opening up in the air. Sur popped her head through.

"Hey guys, what did I miss?" she asked. Miya cocked her head to the side.

"What are you doing here?" she asked.

"No one was really telling me anything," Sur said. "So I came here." She climbed out of the hole.

"I know who he's going after," she said. They were all staring at her now. Sur didn't wait for a pause.

"Akai Takuma," she said. "He has pictures of her on her wall." She sounded so grim when she said this. The tadpoles didn't speak at first.

"But why?" Miya asked. "Did she work on the Tadpole Project?"

"No," Sur said. Meanwhile, Shingo was typing away on his keyboard. Now that he had a name, this narrowed things down. Instantly, the results came up. The therapist's face came on screen.

"This her?" he asked. The other tadpoles came around for a look.

"I've seen her before," Wesley said.

"I don't get it," Miya said.

"Get what?" Yukio asked.

"Yamato's group is killing those involved with the project, right?" she asked.

"Yeah," Sur said.

"And she was just part of the regular Chou Mori staff, yes?" the former bodyguard asked.

"Yeah," Wez said.

"Then… why is he going after her?" she asked. The others didn't have an answer for that.

Meanwhile, Yamato sneezed. He cursed himself as he figured that the others caught on to what he was doing. Takuma stared up at with him big eyes. The tadpole wiped his nose and looked at his former case worker.

"Do you know how I tracked you down?" he asked. Takuma shook her head with tears in her eyes. Yamato threw back his head and groaned.

"Will you stop crying already?!" he shouted. "You brought this on yourself!" The woman sniffled.

"Why are you doing this to me?" she whimpered. "I didn't do anything to do!"

"That's the thing!" Yamato shouted. "You did nothing to stop this!"

-December 16th, 2012-

"Oh my! Are you okay? What happened to you?" Takuma asked. Yamato was about to speak. But Kitano came up behind him and patted him on the head.

"Everything is fine," he said. "There's nothing to worry about here. Isn't it right?" The older therapist looked down at the boy when he said that. Yamato's trembling got worse. His eyes pleaded for help. Takuma stared between him and Kitano. Her superior kept his eyes on her. She had herself slowly backing away. Takuma couldn't explain why she was doing this. The woman turned and ran down the hall. The fear in Yamato's eyes deepened as the distance grew between them.

No. Please don't leave. Don't leave me. Don't leave me with him. Come back. Come back!

She walked out the door.

The next day, Takuma left Chou Mori for good.

-November 1st, 2015-

"I'm so sorry," Takuma whispered. Tears ran down her cheeks.

"You did nothing to stop this!" Yamato shouted. "You could've gone to the police! You knew something was wrong! You knew that!" The knife stayed pointed at his victim. Her crying face made him want to vomit.

"How many times do I have to tell you to stop crying?!" he shouted.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" she kept saying over and over. Yamato walked over and smacked her in the face. Takuma yelped in pain.

"I said stop crying!" he shouted. The therapist sniffled in pain. The tadpole took a breath.

"Do you know how I tracked you down?" he asked again. His victim shook her head. Yamato tried not to laugh as he used his free hand to cover his face.

"It was so easy to track you down," he said. "All I had to do was Google your name. My, the internet is a beauty!" His face was now inches away from hers.

"All I had to do from there was track your every move," Yamato added. "I know everything about you now. You are quite predictable these days." He chuckled a bit.

"You really do live a sad existence. No romantic partner in your life. I noticed that you don't really have that many friends. Not even a pet. All you do is get up, go to work, get a coffee at Starbucks, work, and come home. You don't even hang out with your coworkers." Another tear slipped down Takuma's cheek.

"Sure, there are your patients, but what do you really live for?" he asked. "What do you Akai Takuma-sensei have in your life?"

"M-M-M-My sister," Takuma whimpered.

"Heh!" Yamato said. "When was the last time you talked to her?" His victim froze.

"Exactly!" he said. The therapist was in tears again.

"Please don't kill me," she pleaded. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to abandon you. I… I… I didn't know what to do."

"Bull shit!" the tadpole shouted. "You could've gone to the police! You could've told somebody!"

"But who would believe me?" she asked.

"Stop coming up with shitty excuses!" Yamato shouted. "You knew something wasn't right! You could've gone to the cops and said, 'hey I think there are patients being abused at Chou Mori. Could you investigate it please?'" He rolled his eyes.

"You know something?" he asked. "I've had enough of this. I think it's time to end this." Takuma tried to shake her head.

"No… No… Please no…" she pleaded. The tears wouldn't stop coming. Yamato started to see red as Joy Division blared in his head.

"I said stop crying!" he shouted. He raised his knife high above his head.

In the shadow play, acting out your own death, knowing no more

As the assassins all grouped in four lines, dancing on the floor

And with cold steel, odor on their bodies made a move to connect

But I could only stare in disbelief as the crowds all left

By now, the tadpoles were heading to Takuma's apartment. Midori, Saori, Sur, Yokio, Taishi, and Itori were almost there.

"Can you see inside the apartment?" Midori asked.

Madoka had her eyes trained on the apartment. Yes! And it's not good. Hurry!

"On it!" Midori shouted. She looked at the other tadpoles.

"We have to get a move on!" she shouted.

"Right!" the others shouted. The tadpoles sped up toward their destination. That old chill down their spines told them they were close.

"There!" Midori shouted, pointing up ahead.

Meanwhile, Yamato froze as he felt that chill run up his spine.

"Heh looks like they found me after all," he said to himself.

"Huh?" Takuma asked.

"Yamato!" Midori yelled at the doorway. The other tadpole smirked to himself.

"Madoka told me that I was coming here, didn't she?" he asked.

"Let her go," Midori said.

"No!" Yamato snapped as he whirled around. He pointed at his victim trapped in the chair. The poor woman was trembling with tears running down her cheeks. Her glasses made her eyes look so much bigger.

"She has to die!" he growled.

"She's not on the list," Sur said in a low voice.

"But she's just as bad!" Yamato shouted. "She could've ended all our suffering! This bitch could've gone to the police years ago! But she ran away like a coward!" Takuma started murmuring she was sorry through her tears.

"Shut up!" Yamato shouted. The therapist hiccupped a sob.

"What is this going to solve?" Midori asked. The tadpole glared at her.

"What is this going to solve? What is this going to solve?!" he asked. "Don't you understand?"

"I do, but I don't," Midori said. Yamato wrinkled his nose and snorted.

"What the fuck does that mean?!" he shouted. The time tadpole tried to think of something to say to defuse the situation.

"Uh…" Midori said. Saori was the one to step forward.

"If you kill her, we won't have any witnesses in the case," she said. Yamato cocked his head to the side.

"What the hell does that mean?" he asked. Saori took a step forward. The other tadpole still held up his knife. The human tracker put up her hands.

"Okay, okay," she said. "Just hear me out here." Yamato said nothing but didn't put down the knife.

"Risa-san is working on a case against Chou Mori and those who are left, Saori explained. "She's been gathering up evidence and witnesses for years on this lawsuit."

"What does that have to do with anything?" Yamato asked. Saori turned her attention to Takuma. The poor woman looked like she was going to faint. The human tracker knelt down in front of her.

"What is your name?" she asked.

"T-T-Takuma," the therapist said. Saori reached forward and wiped away her tears.

"You really regret leaving Yamato-kun behind, don't you?" she asked. Takuma tried to nod as she whimpered.

"And you want to make this right, don't you?" Saori asked.

"Yes," the therapist whimpered. Yamato rolled his eyes. He already saw where this was going. The human tracker took her by the hand.

"Then help us with this lawsuit," Saori said. "Talk to this lawyer here." She reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out Risa's card.

"You have a chance to do the right thing," she said. "Don't mess this up." Yamato rolled his eyes.

"Seriously?" he asked. "You're just going to let her go like that? Lame!" Taishi walked up and patted him on the shoulder. The younger tadpole looked like he wanted to snap at him.

"Come on, man," Taishi whispered. "You've done enough." Yamato glared at him. The older tadpole's grip tightened on the boy's shoulder.

"You've done enough," Taishi hissed. Yamato clicked his tongue as he shoved the older man off.

"Whatever," he muttered. Taishi's grasp on his shoulder was enough to break the hold that Yamato had over Takuma. The therapist let out a gasp as her body crumpled forward. Midori and Saori had to hold her up by the sleeves. Yamato frowned and walked off.

"Hey! Where are you going?!" Itori shouted. The boy waved her off as he walked out the door.

"Yamato!" Itori yelled after him.

"Leave him," Sur said. The older tadpole turned to her.

"But…" she said. Sur shook her head.

"Just let him be," she said. "He's just mad right now. Going after him will just make it worse." No one said a word. Somehow, Sur had a point. Still, they couldn't just let him be. Taishi looked up at the ceiling.

"Hey, Madoka," he said.

Yeah?

"Can you keep an eye on Yamato this morning?" the flying tadpole asked.

Sure.

Taishi bowed his head. "Thanks." Meanwhile, Takuma sat in her chair looking confused once she got her wits back.

"Who are you guys?" she asked. All eyes fell on her.

"We used to be patients at Chou Mori," Itori said. "Just like him."

"Well, we're now what the internet calls tadpoles now," Taishi added. Takuma just sat there stunned.

It was daylight by now. Yamato walked away with his earbuds in his ears. He was still mad, of course. The boy didn't get his big revenge. Still, he would make Takuma stay true to her word until he got happy. For now, it was just him and Joy Division walking back to his hideout.

I did everything, everything I wanted to

I let them use you for their own ends

To the center of the city in the night, waiting for you

-December 15, 2015-

Shuichi awoke to hear a low buzzing. He looked around in the darkness. His stomach dropped when he realized this wasn't his room. The pieces quickly came together he remembered what happened last night. Before he could react, he heard mumbling behind him. Against his better judgment, Shuichi turned his head. His ex was slowly sitting up in bed.

"Shuichi-kun?" she asked. The tadpole shook his head before climbing out of bed.

"Oh no," he said. "No, no, no. No." Eri tried to touch his arm but he pushed her off.

"Baby?" she asked. Shuichi shook his head.

"No! This was a mistake," he said. "I should not have come here." The tadpole climbed out of bed and looked around for his clothes.

"Shuichi!" Eri shouted. The tadpole didn't answer as he got dressed. His attention was diverted when he heard his phone buzzing.

"Shit," he muttered. Shuichi found his phone in his jeans pocket. One look at the screen and he was out the door.

"Shuichi?" Eri asked. Her ex was already gone. She folded her arms across her chest as she pouted. The woman cursed herself under her breath.