Dark landed in the soft snow on the terrace, disturbing the fine powder and sinking more than ankle deep into it. The snow fall throughout the storm had been heavy and everywhere, the houses wore thick, fluffy covers of the frosted water. Now, in the early dawn hours, it looked quiet and peaceful. Sound was muffled and barely anyone was outside. Few people had their lights on.
Hikari Satoshi was one of those who had apparently waited up.
Dark pushed open the unlocked terrace door and stepped into the pleasantly warm home. He let his wings disappear and shook off a few excess flakes of snow.
"Daisuke?"
The voice sounded rough and sleepy, and when Dark turned, he discovered Satoshi curled up on the couch, a thick blanket drawn over him. He was just now struggling to get up. Dark handed control back to his host and Daisuke stepped toward his lover, smiling.
"Hey. You didn't have to wait up for us."
Slightly glazed blue eyes raked over his body and Daisuke frowned a little at the worry and fear in those normally unruffled features.
"Sato?"
"Are you okay?" Satoshi demanded, coughing a little.
"Of course. Why shouldn't we be?"
"The Ferris Stone! I was wrong about it. It's not the Ferris Stone at all. It was…"
"The Seal of Iben. We know. The moment Dark came close to it, we discovered what it really was. Was no problem either. We sealed it properly. Got caught in the worsening weather on our way back and decided to drop in on Mom and Dad to wait out the worst of it. I would have called, but the phone lines went dead. And there was a power outage not much later."
Satoshi nodded slowly, the tension just now leaving him. "Power's still on here. I was so worried, Dai…"
Daisuke wrapped himself around his lover, holding him tight. "We're fine. You know we went up against worse."
"Yeah." He laughed weakly. "Must be the cold."
"Probably."
Suddenly Satoshi pushed back and glanced around the room. "Krad…"
"Uh, what about him?"
"He… went looking for you."
WHAT? Dark yelled in his Tamer's head and Daisuke winced.
Less volume, okay?
"Why?" he asked out loud.
"I… I wanted to go myself, to the museum… tell you about the Seal. He did instead."
Daisuke scowled. "You're sick at home and you thought to go out there? Damn, we really have to talk about responsibilities, Sato. But back to Krad… we didn't see him. He must have arrived after the job was done."
"But he didn't return…"
"Maybe he waited out the worst of the storm, too."
He would have returned by now, Dark murmured.
Satoshi shook his head. "Something must have happened," he insisted.
I'll go look for him, Dark immediately said.
You just sealed the Seal of Iben. That took some energy out of you
Mostly out of you, Dai. I leeched yours. I'm okay. Really
Daisuke scowled more, but the tell-tale tingle of the separation already coursed through him. Dark, wings out, stood in front of them, meeting Satoshi's worried gaze. The young man was trying to suppress his coughs, but was failing.
"I'll find him," he promised.
"How?" Satoshi asked.
"I can feel him, Satoshi. I always could. It's like a kind of background noise…" The kaitou shrugged. "My own, personal radar."
"Be careful," Daisuke murmured.
"Hey, the weather's much improved. I bet Krad just got lost or something." He grinned cheekily, trying to cheer up Hikari, but the blue eyes showed only worry.
Dark didn't believe his other half had gotten disoriented and lost his way. Krad was too good. And if he had made it to the museum, he would have holed up somewhere and outwaited the storm, just like they had done. He should have been back even before Daisuke and him.
Something had happened.
Damn.
He took off into the pre-dawn twilight and concentrated on the barely perceptible hum in the back of his mind. Krad was alive, true. There was little that could kill the demon. But injuries were another matter…

Satoshi sat on the couch, wrapped up in his blanket, looking miserable and tired. Daisuke had changed out of his phantom thief clothes and made some tea. He now sat down next to his lover and held out a mug of the steaming liquid. Satoshi took it gratefully.
"Dark will find him," Daisuke said softly.
"I was so stupid... sending him out in this weather."
"Sato... Krad's a demon, a magical being. Like Dark he doesn't have the same problems we would with this kind of weather. And if he had not wanted to go, I doubt you could have made him."
Satoshi sipped at the green tea, expression tight. "I was irrational."
"Well, you're only human." Daisuke leaned lightly against him. "Despite your claims to the opposite."
That drew a little smile. "I never claimed to be anything else but human."
"Could've fooled me in the past." He grinned, then grew serious. "Satoshi, he'll be fine. They're both the most resilient beings I've ever known. It'll be okay."
Satoshi placed the tea on the low couch table and snuggled against him. Daisuke wrapped his arms around his lover and placed a little kiss on his brow. He understood Hikari's worries. He would be worried too, but right now all they could do was speculate as to what the reason for Krad's continued absence was. Maybe in the end, it was something simple and curious, maybe something funny.
Somewhere deep down inside though, Daisuke knew it was serious. He just hoped it wasn't too bad. They needed a break. Satoshi and Krad needed a break. Too much had happened to them and the cold had added to the stress.
"It'll be okay," he murmured, stroking over his lover's hair.
It'll be okay.
Please.

Dark found his counterpart in the middle of the small forest, lying between the tall trees, completely still. His wings were out, one almost buried under him, the other semi-folded. Snow had started to cover the white-clad, blond form, making him close to invisible in the wintry landscape. There was a lot of debris from his crash all around, twigs and leaves and branches. Dark touched down and ran over to the silent man.
"Krad!" he called, kneeling down.
There wasn't a twitch.
With careful hands he cleaned away the snow, grimacing at the mudt he found underneath. Krad's crash had disturbed the frosted ground, probably because of his magic, melting it briefly, only to freeze again. The mud was covering most of the white clothes. The long, blond hair was a mess, too.
"Damn, what happened to you?" he murmured.
A soft moan answered him and Dark carefully wiped dirt and snow away from the pale face.
"Hey," he said softly as the golden eyes cracked open.
"Dark," Krad breathed, then coughed painfully. "Why...?"
"Been looking for you all over. You hid well."
Another cough and the inhuman eyes slid closed for a second. "Hurts," he mumbled. "Voltage... got me..."
Dark grimaced and he looked up, seeing the top of the near-by tower. Shit... If Krad had crashed into the power lines, it was the explanation for the black-out, as well as for the burn-out of his magic. The small amount he was emanating was worrisome and Dark laid a gentle hand on the cool chest, transfusing a little of his own.
Krad weakly batted at the helping hand. "No..."
"Don't be childish. You need it."
"You... too..."
"Yeah, well, but I got some more."
There was a soft sigh. Dark ran a practiced eye over the injured man, lingering on the obviously hurt wing.
"You're pretty banged up."
"I... noticed."
"Can you get rid of the wings? It would help carry you out of here."
"Leave me... here."
"Are you crazy? Suicidal?"
Krad smiled dimly. "No, just a... realist. You can't... carry me... home. You're out of power as well."
Dark glowered at him. "I can and I will. With your wings out or not! It'll be more painful for you if you don't reduce them!"
Krad regarded him silently for a moment, then nodded briefly. Dark braced himself because he knew it wouldn't be easy.
And it wasn't.
Fingers clenched into his forearms as Krad tried to hold back the scream of pain, but he lost. It was muffled in Dark's clothes as the demon curled up, his whole body coiled so tight Dark was afraid he'd break something else, and then the tremors started. Whimpering in agony, Krad held on to his other half, seeking strength and shelter in one as he managed to reduce the wings and hide them back inside his body, broken or not.
Finally he lay limp, breathing spasmodically, almost hyperventilating, and Dark found himself stroking the wet, messy hair, talking softly to him.
But it wasn't over yet. He still had to get him home, and that would be even worse.
"You ready?" he whispered into the closest ear.
"No," came the soft groan.
Dark smiled slightly. "We have to get you home and to Satoshi."
That roused him a little. Probably the name of his host.
"He's worried, Krad. Almost ran out of the house with me."
"Sick," Krad mumbled.
"Yeah, he is. And so are you. You two make a great pair." He grinned a little. "C'mon, let's go."

The way home was a blur to Dark as he balanced the injured man in his arms, flying as fast as he dared. Krad had lost consciousness again and it didn't look like he was coming around any time soon either.
What did you do to yourself? he thought sadly. Why? Why did you go and look for me when you knew I can take care of myself? Were you that worried about me?

Dark walked into the room, carrying an unconscious and thoroughly wet Krad in his arms. Daisuke was on his feet in a second, eyes wide.
"What happened?"
"Krad?" Satoshi croaked hoarsely, coming to stand on unstable legs. "What...?"
"Got caught in the storm," Dark said briskly. "Hit some power cables. He's pretty much out of it."
"We got to get him clean and dry," Daisuke decided and led his partner and his unconscious other half over to the bathroom. "Get those clothes off, Dark."
Dark, who was just as wet as Krad, did as he was told. He removed the soggy clothes, dumping them onto the floor, then he and Daisuke proceeded to wash and dry the unresponsive form. Satoshi leaned against the wall, pale as a sheet and feeling sick, but he doggedly remained where he was. Wide blue eyes were on his partner.
"What happened to his back?" Daisuke asked quietly, carefully brushing the towel over the dark bruise there.
"He must have tried to evade the hail coming in, went deeper and hit the power lines. He broke a wing when he crashed." Dark's fingers brushed through the wet strands of blond hair, carefully untangling it. It was a mess. The long strands were knotted. "He had to dematerialize the wings or I couldn't have carried him here, so the injury ends up as a bruise on his back."
Satoshi came over, swallowing hard. He sank down shakily, touching the demon carefully. There was no reaction.
Dark made a noise of displeasure, unable to work with the blond hair. It was impossible to get it unknotted. In the end he reached for the scissors and unceremoniously cut a good length of the pony tail off.
Daisuke stared at him and Satoshi made a strangled sound. The hair was still pretty long, now ending somewhere past his shoulder blades when open, but it wasn't the inhuman length of before.
"What?" Dark asked, annoyed. "You want to untangle the mess? Be my guest!"
"We've got to keep him warm," Daisuke decided, not answering the question.
They carried Krad into the bedroom and Daisuke got out clothes; a sweater, turtleneck and sweat pants. Socks followed.
They finally had the tall form under the covers, Satoshi remaining at his side, gazing at the pale face, lost in thought. Krad had started to shiver and there was an unhealthy addition to his breathing.
"It's your cold," Dark sighed. "He caught the bug, so to speak, through you. Indirectly. I know I was feeling sick when Daisuke had one as a kid. With all his defenses down, weakened by the accident, the bug could even infect a magical being like us."
Satoshi took one lax hand, squeezing it. "I'm sorry," he murmured.
"C'mon." Daisuke touched one narrow shoulder and urged Satoshi to get up. "You should be in bed, too."
"Can't leave him," Satoshi argued stubbornly, trying to fight back. He was too shaky, though. It was a half-hearted fight.
"You're just as sick as him," his lover answered, shooting a pleading look at Dark, who had changed into dry clothes in the meantime. "Dark can take care of him."
"He's my partner," Satoshi tried again.
"Dai's right, Satoshi. You need to get better," Dark told him firmly. "Krad can't merge with you right now and he has to the moment he's conscious enough to initiate it. His energy levels are abysmally low. He wouldn't even be able to power up a light bulb. That means you've got to be the healthier of the two of you. Now go, rest, sleep, whatever... shoo!"
Satoshi looked like he wanted to argue again, but then he deflated. He shot a long look at the blond demon, then let himself be guided out of the room.
"Dark, you'll be okay?" Daisuke asked.
The kaitou nodded. "Sure. I'm in much better shape. When he and Satoshi merge, I'll come back, okay?"
"Okay."
The door closed and Dark was alone with a very sick Krad, who was shivering uncontrollably by now, trying to bury in the mattress.
"You really are accident prone," Dark murmured and settled down on the bed.
Krad moaned softly and curled up.
The other sighed and stroked over the damp hair, carding his fingers into the silky strands.
"So much for survival instinct, hm? You searched for us, knowing the weather. It was hailing, you fool!"
Krad coughed a little, sounding raw and painful. Dark winced, noticing that the shivers didn't die down.
"Fool," he repeated. "Why did you do such a thing? Why didn't you wait? Satoshi was worried, hm?" He smiled tenderly. "So you did it to calm him. You really do have a huge soft spot, my friend. You have changed so much."
Dark looked at his other half, his antithesis, the demon he shared more with than a common origin. So much more. But the last weeks hadn't been the best between them.
All because of Unity. An innocent piece of art created by Satoshi that had upset Dark more than anything else that had happened between them in the past. Everything else had deteriorated from there. Krad had pulled away, refused to communicate with him through the common realm and connection they shared, and the wariness had risen. It was as if the demon saw an enemy in him all of a sudden.
It had hurt.
Well, in the beginning he had been as stubborn as Krad. He had refused to take the first step, but the separation and silence had started to eat away at the kaitou.
When did I start to depend on you? he mused. When was it important that we talked? For three hundred years we fought, but for close to a year now we've been allies and... friends?
Dark gazed at the unconscious man.
Friends, hm? I'd like to think we are. I want us to be.
He ran a hand over the damp, blond hair. So different from his own black mane. Everything about Krad was different – except for his soul.
You're just as vulnerable. You're just as sensitive. You have a soul not unlike mine. But you're more quiet, not so outgoing, not so... open. My opposite. My balance.
Dark smiled at that, resting his hand on the demon's, interlacing their fingers.
"I need you," he murmured. "I need you and I think you need me."
There was no answer, of course.
"I'm sorry about my reaction from before. I'd do anything to make it disappear, to forget it all. I was unreasonable."
Krad murmured softly, seeking his presence, his warmth, or at least Dark hoped he did. Without conscious thought he lay down next to him.
"You changed," he repeated, voice a murmur. "We both did."
Krad couldn't stop shivering. Dark hesitated a moment, then threw caution to the wind and slid under the covers. He curled himself around the blond demon, holding him. Krad molded himself against the dark-haired kaitou, sighing again, quieting down after a while. Dark smiled tenderly and rested his head against one narrow shoulder.