Oh my God. I have not updated in three weeks. Sorry about the long wait! At least this chapter is way longer than my others; let's hope the quality didn't decrease.

Disclaimer: Still don't own it.

Is my plot crap? Is the story moving forward too slowly? Is Amon too OOC? Or is everything ok? PLZ TELL ME!!! calms down ok... on with the story.

Chapter 3

Old Friends and Strange Visitors

Look into my eyes,

Stained glass windows to my soul.

Look into my eyes,

Filled with concealed emotions.

Look into my eyes,

And see a sea of darkness,

Trembling in the night winds of hope,

Breaking against the banks of nostalgia.

Do you remember the first time we met? The moment our gazes locked for the first time? Do you remember the sheen in my eyes? Your reflection wavering in them? Do you remember the sound of my steps as I walked past you? Echoing in the hallway, mixing with the resonance of yours? Or are your memories forever purged from this earth?

Do you remember a cold man? A man of heartlessness and hatred? Darkened, compassionless, pitilessness...a cold shell with a frozen interior. Is that how you remember me? Or did you manage to see past the barrier and into the depths of my person? Maybe if you did, you would see how much of that is not really me.

Knelt before the golden gates of judgement, I pray, although I am not one to do such a thing. I pray that you have not yet passed through, that your soul still walks the world of the living. That I could once more see into the profundity of your eyes is what desire, although so much more would be gratefully accepted. Just once more, allow my eyes the bliss that I took for granted mere days ago. Or perhaps I should just join you in the unknown worlds which all visit after blood ceases to flow; after all, it would be so much easier to bear than what I must endure now.

How can I be so affected by such a thing though? So much suffering has occurred and I have watched it all indifferently, why can yours not be so? Why does fear manage to creep up into me now, fear of something I have never feared before? Why must I feel this way...so many "why's"...so few explanations.

Already was I distraught by your presence before, for so long was I conflicted by inner storms. My mind constantly wandered to thoughts about you, no matter how hard I tried to remain focused. I drank, ate, and slept with your essence inside. While working I would find my mind drifting against my will. I knew no cure for my illness. No, I do not think it was the illness of love that I felt, or love that I feel now. You simply fascinated me with your demeanour, captivated me with your words, and surprised me with your maturity, although your childishness was so often apparent.

And now...it's as if I no longer possess means of living although I have been separated from you for only so long. I had grown dependant on the questions you arose within me, and now that death may separate us, I feel like I have lost a child which I brought up only to fight, and attempted to force the emotion out of. How wrong I was. I was responsible for your well-being, the security of a person whom I had never seen the likeness of before and perhaps never will again. Guilt eats its way through my flesh like termites through wood.

"Let's just say a little bird told me you would."

What am I to believe? What you say seems like so much more than a coincidence. A "little bird" told you? Did this happen to be a certain one with a breast feathered red, or simply a commoner? A ray of hope breaks through the fogged shadows, so fine, yet so meaningful. Chances are that you simply favour this expression over others, but perhaps it is the robin which told you of such things.

Silence was all that ensued those words. Both people seemed frozen in time, but Amon at last broke the silence, demanding more information.

"What kind of deal are you talking about?" he asked in his usual steady tone.

"I told you I'm not going to tell you any more than I already have."

"Then how do you expect me to get out of here?" Amon pursued, hardly stating his words in the form of a question.

"You will be helped, don't worry, I can guarantee that. After all there's certainly no way you could get out of here on your own." The man answered, a smile playing his lips as he uttered the last words.

"Will you assist me?" Amon continued, displeased with having to ask the assistance of others in his own affairs.

"I'm afraid that that's not really possible. I'd be delighted to, but, you see, I'm not really here..."

Amon slightly raised an eyebrow at this last statement, not that it was all that surprising. After all, the man had originally appeared out of thin air. He was just about to demand exactly how he would escape once more, yet a ripple flowed through the stranger's body, and he vanished much faster than it had taken him to emerge, before he had the opportunity to.

Seconds passed like hours as Amon awaited the presence which would apparently save him. It seemed miraculous that no one had yet to enter the cell besides his previous visitor. There was no movement outside the room, and the monotony slowly rendered him rather drowsy. Although he was used to waiting, his patience began to wear thin as the light in the room weakened to a hardly visible glow, and eventually vanished completely. Eyelids drooping, he swiped the shattered glass of the bench beneath him and lowered himself down onto it cushioning his head with the back of his hands while resting his stomach face down on the cold surface.

Dawn came and Amon stirred at the sound of passing vehicles outside. When the sun was approaching center sky, the door to his cell swung open violently and in walked a woman dressed in black. Not even glancing at Amon, she placed the small platter she held on the floor before him and headed back out.

"I'll be waiting outside. Come out to meet me when you're done. Someone is here to see you." She uttered.

Amon, somewhat starved, quickly devoured the platter's contents, chugging down the accompanying water. He stood up, leaving what he held on the floor, and exited to meet the guard.

No words were exchanged. The woman walked at a steady pace and Amon followed paces behind as they proceeded down a monotone hallway marked by cell doors on either side. They at last reached a fork, where the right path was chosen. It led to a narrow, long room with a large glass pane on one side. A familiar face rested behind it.

The woman stopped, and Amon marched up to where an opening lay in the pane. He sat at one of the many stools aligned in a row, speaking one single word as he settled.

"Michael."

The visitor blinked at his name.

"Hey Amon." He stated simply.

"What are you doing here?"

"I thought I'd let you know just how and why you're here, since you probably won't learn it from anyone else." He paused, but when Amon remained silent, he continued.

"As you've probably already guessed, this is one of Solomon's bases. They found you unconscious in the rubble after the explosion and brought you here to be temporarily held until they were able to question you. Let's just say they don't really trust you as much as they used to."

"What about Robin?"

"We searched for her all of yesterday, thinking that she should be somewhere around the area that we found you in. We didn't find anything but we're still looking." He paused and looked down. "Somehow I don't think the search will be worthwhile."

"Why?"

"Well, I'm not quite sure, but I have a feeling that she's not around here anymore. I know it's just a feeling but," he looked back up, hesitating for a moment, "It's strange but I think she's out there somewhere and I..."

Amon was not in the mood for persuasion. He left it at that and tackled a new subject.

"What do you think they'll do with me?"

"To be honest I'm not quite sure. They'll interview you, that's certain, but as to what happens after that...I suppose that if you leave a good impression they might let you out, but certainly not unsupervised. As for if you leave a bad impression, well...I'd rather not speak about that. Unfortunately, with the way things are now in the STN, I think the latter is more probable."

"What's going on?"

"Robin's disappearance is affecting pretty much everyone in the STN-J. Ever since that day there have been a series of strange happenings around here, and not only here, in just about every base. There have been several power failures, but there are seemingly no problems with electricity. We've been working on battery power for the past days. There have also been some strange sounds at night in the building. I stayed there last night to investigate, and just when the power went out again there was a strange, eerie singing noise like the one Doujima and Karasuma had told me they had heard the night before. Needless to say, it seems as if some witches are playing with us. Unfortunately, we've been unable to determine the definite causes for these occurrences. It's put the STN on edge because the tune we heard was one commonly played in funerals; they expect some sort of attack sometime soon."

"And what does this have to do with me?"

"I've overheard a few of Zaizen's conversations on his communicator. It seems that he and many others are wondering where your loyalties lie. Since you've been helping Robin, they're assuming that you may be somehow linked to the current happenings, although I have to say I find it awfully strange. I mean, you've been locked in a cell, I don't see how you could be part of the cause of this. It seems that they're frustrated because nobody's been able to find a trace and they're doing anything to protect their honour."

"Their honour?"

"The STN seems to think that due to recent events the STN-J may not be a qualified as they thought. Zaizen's worried about-"

"Your time is up," interrupted the woman as she approached Amon. "You must return now."

With one last worried glance, Michael stood to leave as Amon was led back to his quarters.

Amon straightened up and once again settled down on the seat. Time was long and he had nothing to occupy it with but his own thoughts, which were not always good company. It seemed that by Michael's account, he had more than one reason to escape from this place. As the sun began to set, Amon's worry deepened. Strangely though, he began to wonder if he was smelling things as his nose detected an odor, and thought it was awfully bizarre that his senses seemed to be being put to the test lately.

A scent of perfume began intoxicating the room, until Amon had to cover his nose with his gloved hands and breathe through his mouth to block out the pungent odour. The fragrance was incredibly and unnaturally strong, so sweet that it was sickening. Amon stifled a cough, but was soon choking on the air, as if it was smoke from a burning inferno. He wondered how such a thing could possibly aid him in accessing the outside world.

Whipping his head around violently, he squinted through the remaining rays of light, searching for the prominence of his discomfort.

"Humph?" he exclaimed, although it sounded much softer muffled through his gloves. Staring directly at him, mere inches away from his face, were a pair of bright, vivid eyes, open in a mixture of excitement and laughter. His own narrowed at the sight as a bubbly laughter escaped the girl's mouth; his brow furrowed.

"You have a conflicted soul, child." She stated simply, ensued by a series lively notes flowing from her lips.

"Quite right, sister." Stated a much soberer voice behind her. Amon could not situate the body which the noise has escaped from.

"You're actually pretty handsome, despite the way Master described you!" giggled the girl, flushing lightly at her statement. Amon's eyes widened almost indiscernibly. He nearly forgot about the smell for a moment.

"Enough play." Stated the male voice, disgruntled by his companion's words. "We did come here for more than such things."

"Sorry,' she stated flatly, sarcasm evident in her voice as she looked up, black pigtails swaying around. "He can be quite the character," she muttered back to Amon, voice quite louder than she intended it to be.

"Enough!" yelled the male. A hand crept own in front of the bars, grasping the girl's collar with a firm grip and pulling the wearer to her feet. The ornate trim of her grey dress as well as her sandaled feet swayed as they searched for stability. Amon was quite relieved that he no longer had to face the person he was seconds before.

"We have come to fetch you from this place," he stated as if to a dog. With a kick of his foot, he badly bent the iron blockade, along with Amon's remaining pride. Following the second kick, Amon ducked as the bars broke loose from their prison, whipping over his head.

"Come on."

Oobles! I have 20 reviews! smiles

In True Meanings: yay! I completed your day! Hope I'm not interfering with your studies too much! wishes she could grant In True Meanings more time Hehe, well I sort of updated really late...don't worry I'm not gone!

AAOTD: hope you don't mind the abbreviation, yousa haves a long name. o yeah, I agree, that's one school's main reasons. Don't worry about the swearing, it's ok. Thanks for the compliment, but will they get together again?? Maybe they won't...hehe ok I'm just being evil now. Hey you gave me a good idea, I might make a triangle, I'll see! Lolz I get high too sometimes (on sugar that is, or sometimes for no reason at all )

AnimeReviewer790: happy you like the emotion, I was trying to focus on that, but I'm trying to aim for a bit of a plot now too, so there might be less, but it'll still be there I promise! Shmee...school.

shorty: eyes wiggle in sockets nn...nn..n...eeee...vaaaaaaaaaar!lolz, think what you wish for now, I shall not give it away! Muahahahahaha!

sailorsaturn12345: glad yousa loves it! (why am I speaking like that??) I've written more just not soon! hoped you liked chapter 2 and this one!

Daisy-chanMistress of Evil: heehee morbid. Nice word choice lol glad you find it well written, I've updated!!!

Hope I didn't forget anyone! I'll update when I can! See you soon! R&R please! (ok I know it annoying when people say that but I do it anyways --;)