A/N – Oh man, I redid this chapter three bloody times and I'm still not completely happy with it. Growl. It'll have to do, though. I feel sick and I have piles of homework. Everyone congratulate me for my supreme powers of procrastination. If I had any sort of super power, that would be it.

See last chapter for that annoyance known as a Disclaimer. And if I hadn't stated otherwise (which I'm sure I did, or at least hinted at) this is slash (which would mean a homosexual relationship) so if you're not entirely comfortable with that, well, find a different story.




China



We'll See How Brave You Are



The first thing Kai noticed was the smell of warmth and dander. That and the crackling noise coming from somewhere to his left.

His face was smothered in something soft and plush (presumably a pillow) and his back and head ached fiercely. It surprisingly didn't take long for Kai to piece together where he was and what had happened. And when he figured it out, he automatically began to rise up on his hands and knees.

"Oh no, no no, get your ass back down Kai." It was the familiar voice from the night before. The one that had came and, apparently, got him away from the pack of street thieves. Now that he focused on it more, he could picture the face the voice came from.

"Ray," Kai grumbled in annoyance, staying in his half-risen position to remind him that Kai never took orders. Ever. It just wasn't in his nature, and it appeared that Ray had forgotten that. Or, more likely, he was under so much stress that he was cracking ever so slightly.

His second guess was immediately proven correct as Ray walked up to Kai's head with a disapproving frown etched on his normally gentle features. The shadows from the fire burning in the fireplace lent a mystery and age to the other boy that only slightly hid the bone-weariness he seemed to radiate. At Ray's gentle prodding of his shoulder; Kai let himself be pushed back to the mattress. He felt almost guilty.

"What were you doing out there? Weren't you supposed to wait for Dmitri to get back?" Ray asked, settling carefully on the edge of the mattress that had been laid on the floor of the living room in Ray, Mariah, and Lee's house.

Making himself useful, Ray carefully removed the light sheet that Kai hadn't even noticed had been draped over him. His pants were still there, but his shirt and jacket had been removed and a quick glance around noted neither of said objects was in the near vicinity. Kai winced and gave an involuntarily gasp as Ray removed a bandage from Kai's back and replaced it with some cool ointment and a new bandage.

Once that was done, Ray sat patiently and waited for an answer. It was one of the things Kai had always hated about him, the fact that he would always wait ever so patiently for an answer to something instead of just getting frustrated and bored and leaving. It meant Kai always had to explain himself.

"He didn't come home. He said a week, and he didn't come home." His voice was schooled to show nothing. He couldn't care, if he cared it would hurt, and he didn't have time for that now. Maybe later, but not right now. He had his own survival at stake.

Ray only nodded, somewhat distracted, as Lee and Mariah entered the room. If Kai hadn't known better (and he was beginning to question if he did) he'd have thought they were just waiting for the right moment to enter. Lee spent a moment prodding the fire into a louder existence before joining Mariah on the coach opposite Kai's mattress, leaving the two facing Ray and Kai.

Both of them looked as weary as Ray, and Kai realized that they weren't used to living without their parents. Ray had been adopted when he was quite young into the other two's family. Lee and Mariah's parents were near perfect. They were overly busy, but for the most part understanding and loving. None of the three White Tigers were used to living on their own.

Mariah sighed, eyes grazing the shadowed carpet beneath her dangling legs. "We need to go out for supplies tonight, Ray. It's been too long." She cast an almost accusing look at Kai, and then immediately followed it up with a guilty, apologetic half-smile. Suddenly Kai wondered just how long he'd been out.

He looked up at Ray, but it was Lee who answered. "Only a day, we found you last night. You weren't in great shape, but we know a bit about medicine." Kai nodded slowly, his head still throbbing unmercifully. Lee seemed to notice that too, he abruptly got up and returned with a couple of dark pills. "Here, it's our last few but you need them more than we do."

Kai accepted, but didn't take, them. Ray was still distracted, Mariah was staring at Ray, and Lee was saying something to his foster brother about supplies and avoiding certain alleys. The blue-haired boy placed the pills on the table next to his head.

"Let's go then," Kai interrupted and as one they stared at him. It was slightly unnerving having three sets of bright, golden eyes on you. Kai's glare dared them to challenge him.

"You're not going anywhere," and apparently Ray was ready to take up the challenge. His eyes were harsher than Kai was used to from him. "You'll stay here, with a couple of those," He pointed to the forgotten kitchen knife in Mariah's lax hand, "and you'll protect our house until we get back."

"Like hell I will. I'm not your family, Ray. You have no obligation to me. I'm leaving. Now. With or without you," after all, Kai figured, sometimes you just needed to assert your dominance. Kai refused to be looked at as an invalid, even if he was far from 100.

Lee just shook his head, not really caring what would happen to Kai. Mariah looked mildly concerned, but it was more for Ray's state than for anything having to do with the wounded boy. Both cast a glance at each other, and with a silent agreement, walked out of the lit room and waited in the dark shadows by the doorway.

Ray sighed, eyes quiet and downcast. "Kai, please."

The other boy closed his eyes. He almost gave in with the pleading tone in Ray's voice, but he knew he couldn't. There was a reason he'd gone out of his own house, there was a reason he'd left his memories, and there wasn't a good enough reason to stay at the White Tigers' place.

"I can't. I have to go." It was as close to an explanation as Kai would give.

Ray looked away in resignation, tolerant but not really understanding and in silent refusal to take the injured boy with them. He could wait no longer, and Kai was a liability. He was friends with the youngest Hiwitari, but he'd let no burdens distract him from keeping his family safe. Rising gracefully and floating to his kin, Ray looked back from the doorway with Mariah and Lee. Their glowing amber eyes signalled their goodbye. Kai made no move. As one they exited the house, disappearing in the night.

Now, Kai thought, onto business.

With careful movements, Kai rose halfway up before feeling his back seize up. Kai grimaced and clutched the mattress violently before forcing himself all the way to his feet. He swayed unsteadily as he felt the paralysing fear of a bout of light-headedness. Focusing on the task at hand, Kai felt along the wall and was instantly grateful for the Ray's consideration to leave the fireplace lit for him.

He pondered momentarily whether to put it out or not, and ended up deciding not to. If the house looked occupied it was safer, even if it was more noticeable. There was a good chance that thieves would leave it alone in search of an easier kill. Figuratively speaking. Besides the stiffness in his back and ache in his head, Kai felt all right. Ray had done a good job, but he would expect no less with a doctor for a father.

There was a kitchen knife set out on the table; maybe meant for him, maybe not, but Kai took it anyway. It was suicidal to wander the streets at night unarmed.

And then he was out the door and into the night. The air had a bite to it, by now the temperature had dropped sufficiently and Kai estimated it to be a couple hours after sunset. Looking up, the blue-haired boy frowned upon realization that the moon was clouded over and the stars were visible only where the cotton in the sky was stretched too thin. Those conditions would make things far more difficult.

Getting his bearings, Kai had been to Ray's place many a time for trivial reasons and contact information, the young man headed back in the direction he had been heading when he'd had his run in with the street kids. Which got him to thinking about that confrontation he'd had the other night.

He'd recognized the sound of one of the pack's voices, but who had it been...? Kai ran through names in his mind and tried to match them to the annoyingly childish pitch of the heavy body that had nearly suffocated him. Ray had recognized him too, and that narrowed down the field significantly.

It had been... Tyson! That was it! Some annoying kid that had been a grade under him when he'd gone to public school and had always tried to pick fights with him. He'd found him an annoying brat then, now he was plain furious. Not that he'd admit that some immature annoyance had stirred any sort of strong reaction in him. One thing was for sure; if Kai ever saw him again the kid could bet on leaving with some manners. Not to mention some bodily harm, just for kicks.

A sharp scream broke him out of his thoughts, and this time he knew the voice immediately as Mariah's. Turning towards the sound, Kai forgot about his injuries and sprinted off. That lasted about six steps. Almost immediately Kai halted, gasping and clutching his lower back as it shot fiery tendrils of pain to remind him of the fact that he'd landed on a knife and that the wound resulting from it may take a while to heal.

Heedless of the danger of letting others know his position in the dark, Kai yelled, "Ray! Mariah!"

He began slowly walking again as a hand closed around his upper arm and threw him viciously against a building. With a grunt of pain, Kai threw a punch at the stranger but before it could land he was twisted around again and pushed violently into an alley.

Barely managing to keep his feet under him, Kai stumbled across the uneven terrain and tried to adjust to the fact that where there had been little light before, now there was absolutely none. His head was throbbing too hard for him to hear anything, and his back was almost unbearable.

The stranger scrambled for Kai's wrists and pushed him face first into a wall before holding him there with one hand on the nape of his neck, forcing his face to scrape harshly against the dirty brick. With the stranger's other hand Kai realized, senses barely there, that he was holding a blindingly bright flashlight. Kai squinted and struggled in vain to hide his sensitive eyes from the intense focus of the light.

The other was determined, however, and merely moved the flashlight closer. Kai, desperate to escape, felt the slight release of the pressure on his neck and threw his body backwards, causing the flashlight to fall from the strangers grasp and flutter along the pavement. An audible gasp shattered the still air around them as the light stretched out past the alleyway and inched across the street and up the buildings. Kai stared, astonished as his eyes adjusted painfully, at the person before him. The other only stared, tensing under Kai's scrutiny. The red hair, the shining light eyes which held absolutely no recognition whatsoever. There was no possible way. His voice was almost inaudible, but held equal parts wonder and concern.

"Tala?"


See, longer than last time! Sorry for the end, I know it's eerily similar to last chapter, but really there was no other way. Look, there's Tala! Told you he'd be in this chapter or the next ... heh. And Kai didn't pass out this time! I hate it when stories conveniently forget about major injuries that they give their characters.

Title is from Yes, Anastasia by Tori Amos (I got Under the Pink this weekend! Does happy dance

Wow! Blinks Lookie at all the reviews! Huggles all reviewers Aww I love you all so much!

Lefty - As stated before, how are you so hyper? Oh Kai is a resourceful, if painfull stubborn, lad. He'll always make it out... hmmm. And yay for Tala! Goes off to take a nap

Reiven - Heh, I said who attacked Kai here. I hate that little bugger, Tyson. Man. I'm sure he has some good moments, and if someone points me to some well-written Kai/Tyson I'm there, but... ugh. Yeah, I read all (so far) of As The Ice Breaks and I love it! I promise to review next time... bad habit.Waves Kai/Tala flag

Kirari-Hiroto - Go us with our crappy old computers lacking internet access. At least it keeps me from spending too much time on it, and I find I write more chapters because it's right there in my room. Thanks a lot!

Spyrit Pheonyx - I totally understand, any review makes me happy. Very, insanely, ecstatically happy. I'm glad you like the concept, so hard coming up with good ideas for fics I find. Go Tala/Kai! Cheers

shady gurl - Why thank you, I hope it continues on its path of interestingness.

Silverm - Hehe, get some sleep! Although I do appreciate fainting... Thankyouthankyouthankyou!

Woo that was tiring. I loves my reviewers, loves my reviewers. Here's hoping I can keep to this schedule of updates on Mondays and Fridays! Have a good week!