Disclaimer: Don't own nothing, 'cept maybe your head, if you try to sue.

Warnings: Shonen-ai, pretty non-existent plot, relatively non-existent timeline, slight OOC, angst. First-time fic, if that counts as a warning.

Daisuke gulped. He knew exactly why he was there, so there was no point in saying something inane like 'What am I doing here'. Satoshi was his friend, whether the other boy acknowledged it or not. The wisdom of the decision was another matter entirely. He could remember all too well the results of his encounters with the other's alter-ego, Krad. The first time they had met, the homicidal blonde had greeted him, then promptly swatted With into the ocean and tried to strangle the red-haired Tamer. After that he had wound up half-drowned, having been blasted beneath the water. It had only gone downhill from there, and by rights, he ought to be making a conscious effort to stay as far away from the Hikari heir as possible. Instead, he was on a beeline for the boy's house. Admittedly, he was doing it in part so that he could annoy the phantom thief that was currently screaming wildly in his mind.

(Give it up, Dark; we're going and that's that.)

((You're nuts! Off your rocker! If you even had a rocker to begin with! Why in the name of all that is good and holy (and a few that aren't) are you even considering going near that crazy killer?))

Daisuke frowned slightly. (I've told you lots of times already; Satoshi is not a crazy killer.)

He received a distinct image of himself being clobbered by a mallet. ((And I've told you even more times that, being the host to Krad, they are in effect one and the same. Will you need to lose a couple of limbs before it begins to sink in? You're walking straight into the psychopath's lair!))

Daisuke smiled serenely. (I trust Satoshi.)

((Why, Kami-sama? Why, of all the possible families you could have picked for me to haunt, did you have to pick the one that produces the densest possible hosts in the universe? You. Are. Going. To. Get. Yourself. KILLED!))

"I trust him." Daisuke repeated simply. Dark muttered something that sounded vaguely like 'Kami-sama grant me strength' before retreating deep into the Tamer's mind.

Soon enough, Daisuke Niwa found himself standing at a door that he had come to know very well, seeing as their teacher seemed to take some sort of sadistic delight in sending a stuttering, nervous Niwa to deliver Satoshi's homework whenever the young police commander was absent from school. He hesitated. Despite what he had told Dark, even he had to admit that walking willingly into the arms of someone who wanted to capture him was more than a little foolhardy.

((Thank you. There might be hope for you after all. And when did creepy boy turn from 'Hiwatari-kun' to 'Satoshi'?))

Daisuke flushed and ducked his head. (I can't hear you, Dark.)

((Really? Alright then—WHEN DID CREEP—))

(Dark! Shut up!)

Surprisingly enough, that was exactly what the kaitou did. And then he found out why. Looking up, he suddenly found himself lost in a pair of piercing blue eyes. Satoshi had chosen to leave his glasses off that day, and there was now nothing separating Daisuke from the full intensity of his gaze. Instantly, he turned as red as his hair. "Ah-ah Hiwatari-kun…"

"What are you doing here, Niwa? It's a Sunday, so there shouldn't be any work for you to deliver."

Daisuke flushed an even deeper shade of red, the only indication that he had noticed the other's cold tone of voice. "W-well… You were injured during the fight yesterday, so I thought I'd just… Drop in on you. You know, to make sure you were alright. And that you didn't need any help. And to keep you company. Um."

Satoshi's eyebrow slowly lifted as he stared at his visitor, who sheepishly ran slender fingers through his crimson hair as somewhere in the back of his mind, Dark snickered. Until that moment, Daisuke had not realised the complete irony of the situation, given the fact that it had been he who had given Satoshi those injuries. Granted, it had really been Dark and Krad, but still…

"Ah… Since you're obviously fine, I guess I'd better get a move on then. Sorry for—"

"Please come in."

A year ago (1), Daisuke would have begun to stammer and look about shiftily, but this had occurred too many times already, and he now walked into the house with nothing more than a sigh and a mild feeling of trepidation. He stopped three steps away from the entrance to brace himself, and true to form, there came the sudden and sharp bang of the front door being slammed shut, followed shortly by the distinct click of the lock. Opening his eyes, he forced himself to relax, grateful that he had at least succeeded in keeping his feet rooted to the ground.

((I swear Dai, that boy has a positively evil sense of humour,)) Dark grumbled testily.

(… I agree.)

This was going to be a long day.

Satoshi Hiwatari was not having a good day. Actually, saying this was something of an understatement. Satoshi Hiwatari was having a thoroughly crappy day. First, there was the fact that he had just managed to collect numerous injuries, among which numbered a badly sprained ankle, severe bruising over his ribs, a dislocated shoulder, and a deep gash along his right arm that was certain to scar, and scar badly. At least Krad had had the grace to do something about the shoulder before transforming back into Satoshi, which had saved him the awkwardness of having to cook up a good story to tell the hospital staff about the source of his injuries. The rest of his wounds would heal with time, but until then, they were causing the boy a damned lot of pain.

Then there had been that morning, when he awakened to find that he was running a fever which made him absolutely miserable. He had been dizzy and nauseous, and felt like throwing up, even when there was nothing to throw up in the first place. The fever broke by late morning, but left enough after-effects that he was currently as weak as the proverbial kitten.

And as though that had not been enough, Niwa had to come sauntering up to his front door, that annoyingly innocent look on his face as he told Satoshi that he had come to 'visit'. He used to enjoy such visits, and he still got a kick out of pulling pranks on the already-jittery thief, but now that Krad…

Growling slightly, Satoshi retrieved the drinks from the refridgerator and shut the door, leaning his head against the cool surface. He closed his eyes. 'Kami-sama help me, I have no idea whether to be touched or angry.' Or perhaps he would stick to being worried. When was that Niwa going to 'get it' and learn to stay away from him? Did the boy actually want to get hurt, or was he just dense? Why on earth had he invited him in? And why was Dark not doing something about this?

Satoshi sighed wearily, pushed away from the fridge and headed out of the kitchen. There was still one thing good about all of this; Krad, having been equally drained from the battle of the night before, was still dozing quietly in the back of his mind, and did not seem inclined to be roused anytime soon. Nevertheless, Satoshi had taken the precaution of opening several large windows in the house. Dark would know what to do.

Reentering the sitting room, the slim boy blinked as he took in the sight of several bentou boxes spread out across the carpet, an embarrassed-looking Niwa sitting in the center. Satoshi noted with amusement that all of the boxes appeared to be decorated with a profusion of pink styrofoam hearts. 'That's right; it's Valentine's Day. Just as well I didn't go out then.' He had no wish to get assaulted by random herds of girls, especially since… No, he would not go there.

Surveying all the food though, he couldn't help but think that this was a little overboard, even for Emiko Niwa. He sat down across from Daisuke, handing the red-head his drink with a sardonic expression. "Let me guess… You conveniently forgot to mention to your mother exactly who you were planning to visit today."

The immediate flush on Daisuke's cheeks confirmed his guess. Smirking, Satoshi shook his head in amused exasperation, picked up his chopsticks and gestured towards the food, as though he were the person who had provided it instead of Daisuke.

"Please."

They ate in companionable silence, neither of them saying much. Satoshi had not really intended to eat, his fever of that morning having taken away what appetite he had usually. He knew, however, that it would be easier than sitting there and having Niwa stare at him. The young thief could be extremely stubborn when he chose; especially when it concerned the welfare of those he counted his friends. And the Hikari heir was one such, no matter how much Satoshi had tried to convince him of the contrary. Besides, Emiko's food was good.

There eventually came a point when neither of them could eat any more, and they both began in wordless assent to pack up the now-empty containers. Stacking up the last of the boxes, Satoshi picked up his can of green tea and sipped at it, the fingers of his other hand picking restlessly at the bandage covering his wound. Finally, he let out a soft sound of frustration and lifted his eyes to meet those of Daisuke's. It was time for The Talk.

"This has to stop. And don't tell me that you don't know what I'm talking about, because you do. I do not want to hurt you, Daisuke, and I know you don't want to hurt me. The point I'm trying to make here is that, the more you hang around me, the more likely it is that we are going to end up injuring each other! This has to stop."

Daisuke stiffened almost imperceptibly, so much so that had it been anyone else but Satoshi, they would not even have noticed. The police commander caught it though, and he gritted his teeth, right as a huge grin appeared on the other's face.

"It's alright, really. I know you'll be able to stop Krad."

The blue-haired teenager now ground his teeth in irritation, resisting the urge to groan out loud. "Daisuke, the amount of trust you have in me is touching. In fact, it is extremely touching. It is also extremely scary."

"But—"

"But nothing; I can't stop Krad. I've tried, and I can't. Every time I fall asleep, I start to worry that Krad is suddenly going to take control and fly over and strangle you, and I—and…" He trailed off, unable to continue. When he saw Daisuke's determined yet wounded look, he felt like pounding his head on the wall.

"But what about the time—"

"That was a fluke," Satoshi interrupted roughly. "Had it been but a few seconds later, you would have died of strangulation, and by my hands. Listen to Dark, I know he's telling you the exact same thing. Krad is strong, too strong, and I don't know if—"

Now it was Daisuke who interrupted, his deep red eyes flashing angrily. "And so you think closing yourself up, withdrawing back into yourself is the answer? You'll kill yourself that way, can't you see? I said I trust you, and so far—"

"Don't you understand? I'm afraid I'll lose you, yes you, Daisuke Niwa, afraid that I'll accidentally end up murdering the one person who's ever taken the trouble to-to care, and I don't want that, I don't want to lose you!" Somewhere in the back of his mind, he knew that he had lost it, that he was saying things he had never intended to say and that should not have been said, that it was beginning to wake Krad; but he couldn't stop himself, not now.

"You have no idea how much you mean to me, and I don't—I can't bear—I just—" Chest heaving, he stopped, eyes squeezed tightly shut as he tried to regain control of himself and his emotions, and failing miserably. He never heard Daisuke approach, never saw him lift his arms, but somehow, he found himself falling forward into a warm, accepting embrace, and before he could react, he felt a breath on his forehead, then the soft press of lips, and then a comforting voice "—alright, it's alright, it will be…"

And then he transformed.

Owari

Author's Note: Gah. I had never meant it to become angsty. In fact, this was supposed to be a fluffy and pointless story involving a progression of three kisses (No reason why three; I just like the number), but Satoshi angst bunnies ran away with me. This was also supposed to have been posted on Valentine's day, but I somehow managed to leave my notes in school. Apologies for the lack of flow and any other errors you might find; I have been having severe sleep deprivation of late.
Not sure if I'll bother with a sequel as it's a bitch trying to muddle stuff out, but if I do, it will be posted within the week.

I have never watched the anime, and am still at book 7 of the manga, and thus have no idea of exactly what is supposed to have happened a year from when it all started, or whether Dark and Krad are even still around, or if Dai is still in love with Riku. For the purposes of this fic however, I am ignoring it, they are, and Dai isn't. The reason why I said a year is because if I am going to write something which involves two characters exchanging kisses, I want them within at least a year of being LEGAL, even if I have no intention of getting past PG-13 level.