Well, here we are on chapter five. Not the longest fic I've had yet, my longest was eighteen chapters…ah the days of Lord of the Rings fanfic. That was also in the days before I did yaoi…boy was life boring!

Dark: Hell yeah, it didn't have me.

Whisper: Just keep your trap shut, you're here to do the disclaimer, remember?

Dark: Right…:clears throat: She doesn't own it, if she did I'd freakin sue, so don't sue her, she's just letting us play a little. Oh, and in this story, I'm probably eventually going to get laid…with another guy…so…yeah…it's yaoi.

Whisper::glare: That's the last time I'm letting you do the disclaimer!

Dark: Oh, what, and you're going to get Krad to do it?

Whisper: Well at least he has decent grammar!

Dark: Spoilsport.

Oo.oO

Price of Angels

The Pleasure in Finding

Oo.oO

It was so warm.

He could feel the warmth on his face even though his eyes were closed, and it felt comforting after all the cold loneliness he had endured. He couldn't remember the last time he had felt so safe, there was a lingering feeling of protection and reassurance about the atmosphere, and he could…sense something else. An extreme sense of worry and…perhaps loss, but this was faint enough that in any other circumstance he would have brushed it aside as inconsequential.

But it was…familiar. It brought to the fore recallings of the time when he had come face to face with the consequences of his own folly and had sought out his other half, who had hidden himself away in the vestiges of his mind, alone with his own despair. Daisuke had refused to appear, to come out…until Dark had sought him, and brought him back.

Yes, that was much like this present feeling.

The thief opened one eye, slowly, enjoying every beam of light as it was unveiled bit by bit, his gaze lazily observing the dust motes that danced in the sunbeams let in through the window.

Another amethyst eye joined its counterpart in surveying the surrounding room. The room seemed to be softly glowing, illuminated by the late morning sun. It was beautiful in a simple way, one that Dark had not enjoyed for far too long.

What a day to be alive. And life was something Dark Mousy would never take for granted. He had a real life now, with a human body to call his own, something he'd never truly had. As a creation of the Hikari's, albeit an accidental one caused by the Black Wing's incident, the thief understood how truly fortunate he was.

Now if only he could remember how he'd gotten here things would be just about perfect.

But he was extremely satisfied with where "here" was. It explained the feelings of comfort and safety, the sense of coming home. In fact, it was the only place Dark had ever been able to refer to as home.

And this was Daisuke's room.

The young man tried an experimental stretch, to wake up a little and to test the various states of his healing injuries.

"Ow." He winced at the sharp spikes of pain in different areas. Oh yeah, they were still healing all right, and due to the strain he had put on them last night would only be slower in the mending. Gritting his teeth he pushed himself to a sitting position, swinging his long legs over the bed.

With, disturbed by his movements, peered down from where he had been sitting on the top bunk.

"Kyu!" he greeted cheerfully, blinking large eyes in recognition to his friend.

The thief grinned, flashing white teeth, "Hey there, With!" he reached up to pat the little creature, "Did ya miss me?"

"Kyu! Kyuuuu!" came the emphatic answer as the funny animal bounced down to perch on the purple-haired man's shoulder.

"Good to hear it." Dark stood, slowly, as each movement was telling him exactly how much he was taxing his damaged body, but the thief was above all things a curious being, and the thing that had captured his attention simply begged to be investigated. The lonely canvas called to his inquisitive mind, and more importantly, his desire to know Daisuke, completely and utterly. It was said that art was a way of expressing the soul after all.

Apparently the artwork was a new one, but not too fresh as a light cloth veiled it. Slender fingers reached out, grasping the fabric and letting it slide to the floor.

A sharp exhalation of astonishment simply couldn't be helped. The masterpiece simply took his breath away.

The setting was almost grim, roiling storm clouds, illuminated by hints of lightening at their edges, stark and ominous. But there, at the corner, was a solitary beam of light, daring to break through. That in and of itself was striking in its every detail.

But it was the centerpiece, the focus of all this that stirred the thief's emotions to life.

An ethereal winged creature, one hand outstretched, desperately straining towards the light, was what gave light to this painting. His clothing was ragged, as if he had endured some great trial, crimson ribbons hung loosely from his limbs and torso as if they had once bound this celestial being. The great ebony wings were outstretched in flight, propelling the angel forward, towards his goal, towards that illusively promising beam of light.

The expression was so lifelike, and one of calm determination.

And the features themselves….were that of the Phantom Thief's own.

But in some indescribable way this creature was different, the figure in the painting seemed perfect, pure, as if no sin could ever taint his longings and wishes.

Was this how Daisuke saw him?

Pure. It was so far removed from what Dark felt now. He felt tainted, stained, selfish, a sinner beyond redemption.

"I'm so self-centered, Dai-chan." He whispered aloud to the quiet room, "I want to be here…with you, even though it's not what I deserve." What indeed. Perhaps Daisuke did not look kindly on his reappearance. And what about Riku?

His eyes flitted again to the painting. Well, at least that showed that the redhead thought of him. And Dark knew that even if Dai did indeed love Riku, he would simply be content to watch, to be a companion, a friend. Though it would be hard considering that this was the young man that he loved more than life itself.

But whatever made Daisuke happy.

Dark tasted salt on his lips…and realized with a start that he was crying, whether for joy or regret he couldn't say, but it had finally dawned on him.

Daisuke was here, he could see him…there was no more waiting.

Just then, With hopped down to the floor from his perch on the thief, moving to the door, he chortled happily.

Dark took that to mean only one thing.

Daisuke was coming.

Well, Dark was nothing if not mischievous, and Daisuke, his other half, needed to be reprimanded for neglecting his thief like this. Naturally, there was no logic to his actions, but when had logic mattered to Dark Mousy?

Oo.oO

Toast and coffee…

It was all Daisuke had allowed himself time for that morning, and not that he was trudging up the stairs he felt weighted down with a strange feeling of expectation which did not seem to be entirely his own.

His strange guest was most certainly the cause of this. He didn't know why he should be nervous, this was his own house, after all, and the young man didn't appear to be more than two or three years his senior.

So what was troubling him?

He knew, but it was best left unsaid.

Putting his hand on the door knob, he gave it a deft twist, the door swinging silently open. He stepped into his room, his deep crimson eyes surveying it quickly. An amused With greeted him brightly.

But his disturbing visitor was noticeably absent.

The silence suddenly seemed ominous.

He also observed that the painting that he had worked on so diligently on last night was now uncovered. He was actually curious to know what the other would make of it. He walked slowly towards the easel, only to feel a pair of strong arms latch tightly around his waist.

Daisuke stiffened, unsure as to what to do. Suddenly he was having second thoughts about his good deed of last night.

He could feel the other's breath tickle his ear, and the slight movement of the other's chest against his back as he breathed, he could see violet tresses intermingling with the red ones that had come loose from his ponytail during the night.

And for one second, time seemed to stop…for somehow it felt right.

"Did you miss me, Dai-chan?"

Oo.oO

It was late that same evening when it happened. It wasn't a common occurrence in this town, it was small and Satoshi, who still held his position with the police force, was very efficient in keeping the peace. So perhaps these ruffians were new to town, or just more daring than most.

After all, the thin, blue-haired youth looked anything but imposing.

It wasn't as if he hadn't taken notice of them, the four men, lounging casually against the side of a brick wall. He even took the care to give them a wide berth, eyeing them coldly. But apparently it wasn't enough to discourage them. He noticed that they made no effort to hide the fact that they were following him.

He pulled coat tighter around his lithe body, wondering absently if he presented that tempting of a target. He had gone nearly a block and they had come closer. There was no help for it. This wasn't the greatest part of town and Satoshi wasn't too familiar with it. He wouldn't no where to go even if he thought he stood a chance of outrunning this scum he'd picked up.

He turned around to fix them with an icy stare, "What do you want?"

Their apparent leader, a brunette with squarish features, smirked, unfazed by the glare of the youthful Commander.

"Depends." He took a couple steps closer, forcing Satoshi to retreat a few paces.

"Depends on what?" the teen's voice still didn't betray his emotions, though at this point worry was starting to steep in and a small niggling voice of fear was whispering desperately to him.

The tall leader moved forward again, and Satoshi instinctively moved backwards, feeling a small thrill of terror shoot up his spine when he felt a brick wall against his back. Trapped.

The brunette placed his hands on the wall, one on either side of the young man's body. Leering, he leaned yet closer, "It depends on whether or not you're willing to give us a good time." A low chuckle came from the other three thugs and Satoshi's eyes narrowed.

"Never."

The leader took on an expression of mock hurt and astonishment. "Oh how cold." He snickered and leaned in, so close he could have kissed the blue-haired youth, "Too bad you don't have a choice, pretty boy."

Satoshi's mind was racing, trying in vain to think of any way out of this situation, but nothing was coming to the fore. He felt fingers on his face and shied away instinctively from the teasing caress, only to have his chin gripped firmly in the leaders hand. The other three thugs came closer, not wanting to miss out.

"I'd get away from him if I were you."

The four men whirled suddenly, towards the speaker. A shadowed form stood beneath the overhang of the building behind them, shrouded in the darkness. His pleasantly accented voice had sounded nonchalant, but the underlying threats in his words were also apparent.

The leader's lips twisted into a sneer and he uttered the words that have been the famous last of many reckless fools, "Why should we?"

The speaker stepped forward and with deadly calm stated, "Because I said so, scum."

And Satoshi knew that his four attackers were now in very serious trouble.

Krad.

His long blond hair was unbound, falling about his face and shoulders and down his back, and his yellow-eyed gaze was hard as it surveyed the four would-be rapists. He was a grey trench coat and a pair of tattered, loose pants that were white, but stained from dirt and dried blood. A still-healing cut marred his brow above his left eye, and he seemed to have some small difficulty walking, but it was undeniable Krad.

He inclined his head towards his former tamer, "Infinite pardons, Master Satoshi, I had not intended to be of any further interference, but this seemed to me to be one experience that you could very well do without."

The teen nodded mutely, unable to tear his eyes from the blond. When their eyes had met, he had seen that Krad's eyes were a rich golden color, instead of a feral, hungry yellow which boded no good for anyone. And Krad had just apologized to him? Apparently something had happened to him to cause so drastic a change. Whatever it was, Satoshi was fairly sure it was also the same thing that accounted for the sad, pain-filled look in the angel's eyes as well.

This wasn't at all to say that his emergence didn't fill Satoshi with a desperate sense of dread. He had been betrayed by Krad, to his own father, and had been hurt by his counterpart numerous times…but the teen had to wonder if perhaps something had truly changed.

Perhaps it was the strange demeanor and appearance the blond presented now that caused these thoughts.

Wingless, he looked smaller now, less imposing. Satoshi watched, detached, as Krad sent one of his opponents down to the pavement with a blow to the head.

There was a feline grace to his movement, hampered only slightly by his apparent injuries. The young Commander noted that the dangerous yellow sheen had crept back into the angel's eyes.

A kick in the ribs. Two of the thugs were down. The leader had stayed close to Satoshi, intent on keeping the vengeful blond from his goal. Which, the blunette knew, usually had very painful consequences.

The third was out like a light when Krad's fist gave him a swift uppercut to the jaw. That left only the leader.

Yellow eyes surveyed him emotionlessly.

"You could try to run, you know. Might actually be fun." The low laugh that escaped the angel's lips was humorless, despite his words.

The man gave a snarl, "Damn you, you demon!" he leapt forward, attempting to meet the blond head on. The ease with which his comrades had been dispatched didn't seem to faze him in the slightest.

Krad sighed, irritated, and moved forward to meet the oncoming attack. This was annoying him immensely.

Just then, he saw a metallic glint, and knew he was in trouble, this one had teeth. He heard Satoshi yell a warning, the first words the teen had directed to him all evening. Krad thought that there was a slight irony to that. He felt the knife enter him with disturbing ease. It was unsettling, he thought that it didn't seem so terrible after all he'd been through. He could endure this. He bent double, to shield the wound.

The thug looked down at him, smirking, "Not so cocky now are we?"

Krad looked up at him, an unreadable emotion in his catlike eyes, "I wouldn't say cocky is the word you were looking for."

A fist connected with the man's nose, making a painful crunching sound as bones broke. The man stared stupidly at the blond, who glanced innocently at his stinging knuckles. The leader then passed out, blood streaming from his injured face.

"Messy." Muttered Krad in self-criticism. His fingers were clasped over the knife wound in his side, but blood soaked the grey fabric nonetheless, staining it a deep crimson.

"Arigato, Krad." Said Satoshi, softly.

The angel's eyes, once again a calm golden, came to rest on the young man who he had just rescued. "You are more than welcome, Master Satoshi, I'm simply doing what I should have done a long time ago." His expression became downcast, "But I'm sure you've had enough of the sight of me. I'll be going now."

And he turned to walk away.

TBC

Oo.oO

A/N: Read and review. I live on it. Phew! This was like the chapter that would not end. It took me two days longer to finish it than I expected and it's nearly three pages longer than I originally planned for it to be. Hope you've enjoyed!

Dark: I STILL haven't gotten to kiss Dai-chan.

Whisper: Are you ever gonna shut up about that?

Dark: Not until you let me kiss him.

Whisper: Then you'll just be begging me to let you do other things.

Dark: Hmmmm….

Whisper: EEK! Nevermind! Forget I said anything!

Daisuke: Oh geez, thanks for getting Dark started.

Whisper: I'M SOOOOOOOOOORRRRRRRRRYYYYYYYY!

Krad: Oh shut up already.

Satoshi: Seriously.

Whisper: Fine…just Review readers…I know you're there.