Warnings: Violence

Chapter 14: The Difference

Ritsu-

"Ritsu? Hey," A whisper broke through Ritsu's darkness and tore him from unconsciousness. "Come on. I can't do this alone. Wake up."

It hurt to just open his eyes, the bare light bulb overhead was brilliant in the otherwise dark room. Arisa-san shook his shoulder and Ritsu turned his head just enough to look at her. She was a far cry from the unshakable young woman he'd gotten to know. She looked frightened and pale with a nasty purple bruise on her cheek. "Hurt?" Ritsu winced at the word. His mouth hurt. "They hurt you?"

Arisa-san put a hand to her mouth to stop the hysterical little laugh that burst out. "Me? Me? No. They didn't hurt me. Oh, kid…look at you." She put her hand down as if she would touch the side of his head, but pulled it back. "They got you good. Can you even see straight?"

The door of the cell opened and the sudden light, so much brighter than the light bulb. Ritsu heard himself whimper at the pain, but when Arisa-san took hold of his hand Ritsu stopped and went still.

He could feel it.

Through Arisa-san's hand, he could feel the life that grew inside her, a life that was nearly ready to enter the world. The little life was frightened. It didn't know what was going on around them, it didn't understand why its mother was so frightened. But the life seemed to reach out to Ritsu, searching for safety.

I'll protect you. I'll save you.

Ritsu opened his eyes and did his best to stiffen his jaw. All that effort and forced bravery failed him when he saw who stood in the doorway. Count D, though with far longer hair than the last time Ritsu had seen him, was looking down at him with a distinctly unhappy expression. The look in his eyes made Ritsu's heart quail.

"This is what you have brought me?"

Behind him stood a woman with long black hair and an empty expression. "You said you wanted an orange haired teenage boy. This is an orange haired teenage boy."

Clearly, she wasn't afraid of Count D - or whoever he was. Hadn't Ritsu heard about another Count D? Shigure had said that it was Count D's father who had hurt the family. Logic led to the conclusion that this was Count D's father, not that Ritsu was made any happier by that reasoning.

Count D's father didn't go into the room, but the more he looked at Ritsu, the more angry he seemed to get. "It is the wrong one."

"You should have been more specific." The woman brushed passed Count D's father, ignoring his furious look and came to stand in front of Ritsu and Arisa-san. Her hands were folded behind her back and she stood with a military precision in her bearing. Ritsu was terrified of her. She was as beautiful as Rin, though older, with dark skin and large, almond shaped eyes. Those eyes looked first at Ritsu and then at Arisa-san. "You are not a Souma."

The panic rose inside Ritsu. If he'd fought harder, if he'd been faster, if…if…if he just done SOMETHING different, maybe this would have turned out alright. It didn't matter so much that he'd been kidnapped, but Arisa-san was different. Not just because of the child she was carrying, but because of who she was. She was Tohru's friend and Tohru had always been so kind to him.

"Yet, this one," She continued, jabbing a finger in Ritsu's direction. "Is willing to fight for you. Curious."

While she spoke, Count D's father turned away, angrily. "You can explain to Po-Sin why he will not have what was promised now that I will have to go retrieve the cat myself! I will have to kill it, again!"

Kyou! Ritsu sucked in a deep breath and pushed himself to his feet, trying to get to Count D's father to…to what? To stop him? How could he stop a Kami? Ritsu didn't have to think about the question long because the woman never let him get close enough to even put a hand on Count D's father. As soon as he'd made it to his feet, she kicked him in the chest - hard. He stopped breathing for a moment and didn't start again until after he'd hit the floor and Arisa-san

Count D's father sneered. "So violent. That is the human blood showing through. Disgusting." He smiled, then, and it frightened Ritsu all the more. "Tou-Tetsu, come in. Come in, my dear." What came in from the corridor behind them was an animal unlike anything Ritsu had ever seen before. It was as big as a large dog, but built like a goat and its face was bizarrely human. "Hungry, are you? Poor dear. We haven't had time to give you a good feed. Well, no better time than the present. Stay here. That one might taste sour," He glanced at Ritsu. "But the female is human. Feel free." He turned then. "Do lock him in with them. My pet hasn't fed in such a long time."

The thing, the Tou-Tetsu, was making a soft growling noise and staring intently at Arisa-san. It didn't look entirely healthy, but it did look fearsome with two twisting horns on the top of its head and long, sharp teeth. It crept slowly towards them and it was, indeed, hungry.

"I wonder, are you a dragon, also?"

Ritsu nearly had a heart attack and shifted his eyes from the Tou-Tetsu to the woman. For her part, she didn't seem to care at all that the little beast was stalking closer and closer to Arisa-san. "What?"

The woman opened her mouth to speak again, but another soldier stepped into the doorway. "Indihar, Sir has called for you."

"Bring this one." She gestured towards Ritsu. "Leave the woman and the animal. They're of no use to us."

Despite his protests and struggling, soldiers took Ritsu from the room and the last thing he saw was Arisa-san inching away from the Tou-Tetsu.

Tet-chan-

Hungry.

So hungry, all the time. He hadn't been allowed to eat in such a long time and now the female was presented to him. Not only was she young and strong, but she was with child and any gourmet knew that unborn fetus was the tastiest of human delicates. Just looking at her and breathing in the scent of her and the child made him salivate.

She couldn't fight back. It wouldn't be a decent hunt and that made Tet-chan pause. He liked a good hunt even better than good food. If she weren't so heavily gravid, she might have been able to run from him, even in the confines of the small room. As it was, she trembled and got to her feet as if that would enable her to protect herself.

Hungry. Desperately, maddeningly hungry!

The female kicked at him when Tet-chan moved too close. At least she could fight. It wouldn't be entirely shameful to eat her.

"My dear one," It was not Count D's father who spoke. "My dear Tet-chan, you must not. You must not."

It was as if he could feel the Count's hand touching his face, but the Count wasn't there and the young girl was. He was so hungry. He didn't want to pass up such a feast. His stomach was hurting and he could hardly think. He'd wanted to eat the monkey, but humans were so much tastier. And he was locked alone with one, too! She couldn't escape, no matter how fast she ran. Just a taste…just a bite…

"No." The Count's voice sounded stronger and his hand on Tet-chan's head felt all the more real. "Will you obey my papa or me? Whom do you belong to?"

Tet-chan threw back his head and let out a howl of frustration. He scratched at the floor, carving deep grooves in the concrete with his claws, then turned his claws on himself and tore out chunks of his own fur. He wanted to feed, but he wanted to show the Count loyalty. He couldn't do both. He couldn't!

"Help me, then!" Tet-chan wailed. "Where are you? Come for me! Take me!" But in all the months he'd been with Count D's father he'd not heard a word from the Count and had almost given up. Even as the blood ran down his face, Tet-chan screamed, "Don't you want me? Why don't you save me!" His screams turned to a mournful cry. "Why ?"

The voice didn't speak again, but the feeling overcame all else. A marvelous feeling of peace made Tet-chan calm. He stopped clawing at himself and thought - for just a moment - that he saw the Count's beautiful gold and purple eyes. The hunger vanished and Tet-chan felt more like himself, again. Of course the Count wouldn't have abandoned him. Tet-chan looked back at the closed, locked door and snorted at it. He was free of his muzzle for the first time in a very long time. This time he would not go so willing into slavery.

Let the cursed Kami come for him and Tet-chan would show him what the last of the Tou-Tetsu would do! He would fight and die before he was taken again!

"You!" Tet-chan let loose another howl, this one more aggressive than frustrated. "You are my master!" Then he turned back to the girl, still frightened and determined to protect her unborn young, and knew she was safe from him. The hunger didn't plague at him and he knew that once he was home, the Count would give him plenty to eat. So Tet-chan steeled himself and ignored the human. She was no threat. He turned instead, to the door…and waited.

Ritsu-

Ritsu cried brokenly as they led him away from the cell. He heard the terrible howls of the animal and knew that it must have killed Arisa-san and, with her, the baby. How awful of him to simply dismiss Arisa-san. How terrible he was. But the baby…the baby was so important. Everyone could die without the baby. So upset was Ritsu that he really didn't realize where he was being taken until the guards tossed him to the floor and he landed hard.

"Please," Ritsu found his voice before he looked up. If he looked at her he was certain that he'd loose what little nerve he had. "Let us go. We can't be a threat to you. We're harmless."

The woman coolly appraised him, walking in a slow circle around Ritsu. "You are harmless. Weak. However, you do have information that could be valuable."

"No. I don't know anything. Really!" He finally looked up and cringed back when he met her eyes. "Honestly. Please, just let us go home."

"I'll have your family eliminated, soon enough." The calm, casual way she said it made it all the more nightmarish. "I want to know about the dragon."

"There is no dragon." Ritsu said it almost without thinking. The command to keep the family safe had been as deeply ingrained in him as it had been in everyone else in the family.

The woman watched him for a moment, then pulled a slim cell phone from a pocket and pushed a single button and put it to her ear. "Indihar speaking. The mission has been complicated." She paused, listening to whoever was on the other end - the person who had given the orders to attack the Souma's. "I did not anticipate the dragons, Sir." Another pause. "Yes, Sir. Dragons. The mission was nearly complete when two dragons appeared from the sky to stop us. Most of the operatives were killed by the dragons or by a freak electrical storm. I saw it, Sir. I do not imagine things. As according to orders, the orange haired teenage boy was taken," Her eyes drifted to Ritsu at that. "But Doctor D was unimpressed. He said we had taken the wrong boy and left him with me. We also have taken a hostage to ensure the boy's agreeable behavior. Yes, Sir. Yes. No, Sir. I understand." She hung up and turned to look at Ritsu, again.

"Who are you?"

"A tool." She answered. "Nothing more. You will tell me where the dragons came from. You will tell me why they guard your family."

Indihar-

She had been against the idea of leaving Sir in the first place.

"I want my best on site." Po-Sin had told her, hours before she'd left Hong Kong. "You are the best, so you will go. I don't want anything to go wrong."

How he had imagined that she could stop things from going wrong was a mystery. She had exactly the same training as all of her comrades. She was older than most, but that hardly gave her any kind of advantage. She didn't voice her concerns when she'd received her orders. She had simply gone as directed and ended up in Japan where she'd met up with nearly fifty other Black Scorpion operatives. It hadn't been hard to find the Soumas. It wasn't as if they went out of their way to hide themselves.

Ridiculous. They were harboring property of Sir and they were so stupidly bold as to just sit around in plain sight? Why they wanted the children was a mystery, as was the reason for why they kept them.

She always followed orders, to the letter. She had led the attack on the Souma estate, entering through the rear so as to attract as little attention as possible. It would be impossible to keep such a massive assault hidden entirely. The children were to be killed, first. After that job was done, the soldiers were to kill the Soumas.

Somehow, Indihar had been out of the way when the dragons had descended to fight for the Soumas. Not that they had really done all that much fighting. It had been more like a massacre. Then the freak lightening storm had killed so many of the remaining soldiers. In the end, only four soldiers had escaped from the Souma estate, one of them being Indihar.

Indihar didn't know why doctor D was so upset with the orange haired teenage boy he'd wanted them to retrieve from the Soumas, but he had left without the boy which left a problem for Indihar. She had two witnesses to deal with. Two people she didn't need except for one thing…she had seen dragons.

"I will torture you." Indihar told the boy. It didn't seem fair to surprise him.

Broken toes and mangled fingers, the boy cried and cried. At each touch he wailed loudly and thrashed. Indihar took pains to keep asking about the dragons. As soon as he told her, she would end the pain. She could kill mercifully. A simple twist of his head and she could break his neck. A quick death was the pinnacle of mercy.

She went so far as to try humiliation. She stripped the boy of his clothes and cut his pretty hair down to the scalp. He sobbed at that and, when Indihar had gone to get the needles, he'd held his long strands of loose hair like a child clutching at a teddy bear.

Teddy bear.

I had a teddy bear, once. Mama threw it on the fire.

She had a little hammer, big enough to make large, ugly bruises over his ribs and stomach. She didn't hit him in the head, afraid of making him lose consciousness. That would have been counterproductive.

The boy hadn't given in. He screamed when she used the needles, slipping them under his fingernails and toenails. He screamed louder when she'd delicately driven them into his inner thighs and armpits. When he still refused to speak, she had sat back on her heels and frowned at him.

"You are being foolish. Do you enjoy the pain?" Surely, he couldn't. Indihar had learned quickly that obedience meant an end to pain. It seemed odd to her that this boy had never learned that lesson. "Tell me about the dragons and I will stop."

He gasped and sort of choked. "There are no dragons."

Ritsu-

Members of the Zodiac changed to their animals forms not only when hugged by a member of the opposite sex, but also in cases of extreme stress. Ritsu couldn't think of a more stressful time in his life.

Don't change. Don't change. Be calm. Don't change. Don't change. Ritsu commanded himself, closing his eyes in an admittedly feeble attempt to protect himself. Don't. I can be strong. Ayame's strong. He'd want me to be strong. But the woman pulled harder on his ear until Ritsu was certain it was tearing off his head and Ritsu gasped in pain. Don't change. Have to protect the family. Don't change.

"Tell me about the dragons and I will stop."

Ritsu sucked in a deep breath and it hurt. Her little hammer had broken a rib or two, he was sure. "There are no dragons." He knew she must have been talking about Hatori and that - somehow - Hatori must have seen Count D in order to turn into an actual dragon. Still, he persisted. "There are no dragons." Who was the second one, though?

"I saw it, myself. A great black serpent and another, a red beast with three heads." The woman walked around Ritsu with a slow, deliberate pace. Her fingers were stained with his blood. "You are worthless to us except for the fact that I am curious about the dragons. The girl even more worthless. I should kill you, now. I could kill you now." She put a hand to Ritsu's throbbing face and ran her thumb over his cheek. "It's nothing personal. It's just the way things are."

"There are no dragons."

"I saw them. I was there." She moved her face closer until Ritsu could only see her and nothing behind her head. "There were dragons and they defended your family. I am not a person given to flights of fancy. I have no use for fantasy and the chances that what I saw was a hallucination are very low. There WERE dragons and you know about them."

If he told, then he would truly be worthless to her. If he told, then Hatori would be in danger, the whole family would be in danger. Ritsu felt as if part of him went to sleep as he blurrily met the woman's eyes. "There are no dragons."

"You will admit everything…given time." Indihar did not, apparently, believe in subtly. She had Ritsu tortured againand though it all, though he cried and screamed, he said not a word about Hatori.

When Indihar was done with him, Ritsu though he might die. Sort of funny, in a way. How many times in his life had he wished that he'd never been born because of saying or doing something stupid? How many times had he thought about killing himself so that he wouldn't bring further shame down on his family? Now, for the first time, he was actually close to having his wish and he didn't want to die.

"You can take a lot of damage." He dimly heard Indihar's voice through the haze of pain. She said it as thought it were a sort of compliment. "It is admirable, but quite unnecessary."

Soon, Indihar stepped back from Ritsu and opened the door of the room where there were several soldiers waiting silently. "He will take time. We will return him to the cell for rest. He can't be allowed to die before we get answers. Sir is very curious."

He was carried through the halls, but, again, he didn't understand where they were. The pain was making everything sort of hazy. He knew he was being carried because he felt like he was float - like when he was little when Ayame would give him piggyback rides. But these arms weren't warm and Ayame wasn't laughing.

He felt sick to his stomach, but didn't throw up. What would they do if he did throw up on one of them?

He wasn't really aware of anything but the pain until he was thrown onto the floor and something soft was tossed onto him. His clothes. At least they'd returned his clothes.

There was an angry exclamation of, "What did you do to him!"

Arisa-san wasn't dead! The strange animal hadn't eaten her! She sat, almost exactly where she had been when Ritsu had been taken from her with the little animal laying on her lap. The little animal raised its head to glare balefully at them. It was not in a good mood, that much was obvious even to Ritsu. When Arisa-san tried to stand to go to Ritsu, the little animal refused to move even a bit.

She even pushed at it with a gruff, "Get off!" But the animal stayed where it was on her lap and growled at her.

Indihar frowned a bit at Arisa-san. "Doctor D's pet doesn't seem to be as hungry as he thought."

"…kill you." Ritsu said the words without really thinking about them. He inched his way to Arisa-san's side and raised his eyes to look at Indihar. "I'll kill you."

She cocked her head to the side, curiously, but turned and left without another word. The door closed behind her with a loud 'click' as it was locked.

Arisa-san cursing quietly. In her agitation, she'd begun to stroke the fur of doctor D's animal.

"Don't worry." Ritsu put his hand on Arisa-san's arm. He was dimly surprised that the animal allowed even that small touch. "I'll protect you. If it's the last thing I can do, I'll protect you." He rested his head against her shoulder and lowered his hand to her stomach. Though that touch, he, again, felt the frightened presence of the baby. Everything hurt so much and Indihar was coming back. She would start, again. Tears flowed freely down Ritsu's face and he rested his head against Arsia-san's arm. "I'll protect both of you."

Elsewhere-
Shigure-

Shigure obediently followed Hatori and thought. With every step he took, his thoughts grew darker and darker. Months he'd been gone, a righteous punishment for what he'd done - Shigure had thought. Now, things looked entirely different. He had known that life would be different after Count D had changed Kyou. He hadn't guessed how different. If he'd known…

No point in dredging through what might have been. I've done enough of that, lately. Shigure moved his thoughts to the future. He accepted that, perhaps, he'd made a mistake. Not that he thought he'd done anything wrong in distancing himself from the family - he deserved that rightly enough and what Hell that had been! Bad enough that he'd suffered pangs of needing to see Akito in just living so far from home when he'd lived in his house. It had been so much worse when he never visited or even spoke with Akito. It had almost been physically painful.

What Shigure knew was a mistake was that he hadn't bothered to do any spying on the family. He should have hung around the estate once or twice just to see how everyone was doing. He should have been keeping an eye on them. Maybe he'd have been able to help…somehow.

Hatori didn't speak to Shigure on the way back to the estate. Possibly, because he'd blackened Shigure's left eye in their little brawl and possibly because he was still angry with Shigure. And he has every right to be.

On the way back to the estate, they passed Ayame's shop - what was left of Ayame's shop - and Shigure stared in horror, though he didn't stop walking.

"We believe the Black Scorpion attacked it. Jill-san was there with information about the Black Scorpion. She managed to smuggle the information out with Mine-chan and got it back to the estate. Jill-san is dead. No one else was hurt, though."

And I wasn't there for Ayame when it happened. The burden of guilt Shigure carried was only made heavier as he looked at the ruins of what had been Ayame's shop. The shop had been cleared away and it looked as if preparations had begun for a new building to be put up on the site. There was a sign posted near the sidewalk:

FUTURE HOME OF JILL'S BOUTIQUE BY THE MANAGEMENT OF AYAME'S.

The sign was decorated by hand with large pink and white flowers and had little pictures of someone who was obviously supposed to be Ayame in the corners.

Flashback-

"'Gure! Look! Look!" Ayame had fairly danced into the room in his excitement. "I have it! Akito gave permission, after all this time!"

Behind Ayame came Hatori, slow and deliberate as always with a little twinkle in his eyes. "I wonder who changed his mind?"

It had been a silly question. They all knew that it was Shigure who'd sweet-talked Akito into letting Ayame have his own shop. "Now, now." Shigure laughed. "You must not talk like that, 'Tori. Akito made up his own mind. He just had to be presented with all the good Ayame's business could do the family."

"Such as?"

"Such as fresh New Year robes every year hand-made by a Souma for all the Zodiac."

Ayame's smile brightened and he threw his arms around Shigure. "I'll make them with all my love!" He cried out. "The best silks, the brightest colors for everyone!"

Ayame had been dreaming of opening a clothing shop since they'd been in high school, but once they'd all graduated it seemed that Akito saw no reason for a custom clothing shop and refused to give permission. Shigure, however, could talk whales into flying, or so Hatori always cynically said.

Only months later, Ayame, Hatori, and Shigure all stood together outside Ayame's shop which had been predictably named: Ayame's. If nothing else, the snake of the family had plenty of self-esteem. Ayame, for once, said not a word as they looked upon his shop. It was little more than a one room with a small apartment above, but the window was clean and the sidewalk freshly swept.

"It's very nice." Hatori said, a booming compliment considering who it was coming from. "Clean and you have all your supplies in. When's the grand opening?"

"Two days. You'll come, won't you? I need all the support I can get. Of course, it'll be a huge success, but…I'd still like you here."

End Flashback-

Shigure could imagine how it must have looked after the fire. Ayame's pride and joy nothing more than black, burnt timbers and broken glass. What a pitiful end to all Ayame's hard work and sweat. No matter how frivolous he seemed, Ayame had worked hard building that shop and his fine reputation.

"It's another misfortune. Just another to add to the list." Shigure and Hatori walked passed the shop.

He continued walking with Hatori for a while, though his thoughts drifted to an obvious conclusion. The family had been attacked. Future head kidnapped. Ritsu kidnapped. Kureno murdered. Akito in danger. Shigure knew he would need all of his strength to do what had to be done. There would be no more hiding. With stunning clarity the words of wise Toma, the previous cat, came back to him.

"You are the dog."

It meant so much, now. It had seemed like a nonsense answer when Shigure had been a child. He'd wanted to protect everyone. He'd wanted to make everyone in the family safe and when he'd told Toma, the old man had said that of course Shigure wanted such things. He was the dog. To Toma that had seemed like explanation enough, but at the time Shigure thought it was nonsense. As he walked by Hatori and let his thoughts run around everything he'd just learned, Shigure understood for the first time.

He was the dog. It was his place to protect just as it was the dragon's duty to heal and the cat's duty to feed. What other duties were there? Would Yuki find his place in the family? Rin and Kisa? So many questions, but none of them really important at the moment.

Very slowly, very subtly, Shigure fell behind Hatori until he was a good two paces behind. When they came to a convenient alleyway, Shigure turned down it to leave Hatori walking alone. Just like before, He thought. Running away. But he wasn't running away anymore. This time, he was running towards something and it was something he didn't want need any witnesses for.

He found Count D's petshop easily enough and went in without hesitation. He only made it a few steps down the stairway before doubt began to gnaw at him. He knew he was doing the right thing. It had to be done. But the Petshop was a daunting place. Even the stairway itself didn't feel natural. The darkness was disturbing as were the sounds of the pets from below.

My fault this happened in the first place. Shigure straightened his back. Can't stop now. In fact, he was rather surprised that Hatori hadn't come chasing after him, yet.

When he'd reached the bottom of the stairway, Shigure reached out to open the door. He stopped, abruptly, when the door slid open on its own. On the other side was a small figure concealed in a gray cloak with a hood covering his face. Shigure sniffed. It was the first thing he normally did upon meeting someone new. Like Count D, there was no scent to the person at all. Despite that, he knew with absolute certainty that the person in front of him was NOT Count D.

From beneath the shade of his hood, the person smiled. The person's lips were painted purple, like Count D's, and the skin was pale as ivory. That smile made Shigure want to cringe.

"And what brings you to my doorstep?" The Kami's voice came from under the hood of his cloak.

"You aren't Count D." Shigure held himself tense. He knew there was more than one of them. The long haired one had nearly killed Kyou, bashed Yuki against a wall, and tossed Tohru out a second story window. This one, though…

"Oh, but I am." The cloaked Kami chuckled with a slight upturn of the corners of his mouth. "I am the ORIGINAL Count D. The first."

Whatever that meant, Shigure had no idea. "I need to see the owner of this petshop."

It amused the cloaked man, though he didn't quite laugh. "I am the…owner. My grandchild, whom I believe you have had dealings with, is currently indisposed. Now," He stood back from the door and gave a mocking little bow for Shigure to enter. "How may I help you?"

D's Bedroom-
Leon-

Leon didn't want to move his hands from D's hip. For the first time in his life, Leon was in bed with another man and it wasn't just sleeping that had led to them being there. They were both nude under the blankets and Leon felt a strange, private delight that he had touched parts of D that no other person was allowed to even see.

The room was dark utterly quiet. Leon opened his eyes and could only just make out D laying beside him. "Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"That I am an inhuman thing? I did think that you might react badly."

"You aren't a 'thing'. I don't understand, I won't even pretend to, but…I don't think things have changed that much. You're still you."

D rolled over and Leon couldn't resist touching his lover's cheek. D responded by putting his delicate hand on Leon's chest, under the blankets. He looked positively delighted. "Yes. I am still me. We should get up."

"What time is it?"

"Nearly dinner time."

Several hours had passed since the attack. Several hours in which Leon had spent exploring with D. He found that his enthusiasm for the hunt had cooled, somewhat, but it hadn't entirely vanished. "I still have to go."

"I know." D's voice was subdued and he didn't look at Leon. "You must return to me."

"I will."

"Promise me you will do nothing foolish to get yourself killed."

"I promise."

Leon reluctantly left the bed and went into the wash room to dress. He realized, with a bit of a start, that his razor was sitting on the edge of the sink along with D's nail file. It had been sitting there for months, but just at that moment, with his pants only half-on, it made Leon pause. His comb in the medicine cabinet. His slippers were tucked neatly under D's bed. He could find his way to the toilet in the dark. Home. Leon felt a silly grin tug at his lips. I'm home.

Even when he and D hadn't properly spoken in months - an unbearably long time - the petshop had been home because his family had been there. Leon looked at himself in the bathroom's mirror and saw no great change in himself. In the end, he shook his head and finished buttoning his shirt. No change in me, no real change in D. Everything's the same, but better. Not better because they'd been physical - though that had been good - but better because all the pieces of the puzzle fit together. Leon understood a lot better than he had before why D was so damned secretive and why weird things just 'happened' around him. It was true what he'd said to D - he didn't understand everything. At least now he knew what he didn't understand.

When Leon left the bathroom, he found D sitting up on the bed, staring into space. "You are wondering what I am doing."

"Yeah."

"Now that I have changed, I find that I am able to contact Tet-chan." He wasn't smiling. "He has been with my papa for quite some time. It was not a good experience for him. At this moment he is sitting on a young lady's lap, trying to protect her. It seems my papa set him there to eat her. Do not look so horrified. He will not do it, though his hunger does overwhelm him. Papa has kept him nearly starved since he was stolen from us." D frowned, making a little line between his eyebrows. "I will have to feed him well when I retrieve him."

"Are you sure you can?"

D's eyes flickered open. "Alone? No. The only one who can overpowerpapa is Sofu."

"Your grandfather, right?"

"Yes. It is thanks to Sofu that I may face papa without fear. Hehas already informed me that he will be the one to deal with papa. At the moment, Sofu is taking care of something for me. He wanted to give us time alone."

Leon had a sudden insight. "Ah! He looks like you, right?"

"Almost exactly."

"I saw him. Months ago, when the Souma's were visiting here. That first night we slept together. He told me not to hurt you."

That made D fall silent.

"I wouldn't, you know. I wouldn't hurt you. So, Tet-chan's safe then?" Leon had never actually liked the little beast, but he knew that finding the thing alive and well would make Chris happy. Besides, he did respect Tet-chan and he was grateful for the time Tet-chan had saved Chris' life.

"Safe and with the ones you seek. He promises me won't hurt the girl, no matter how sweet her unborn young smells." His eyes fluttered closed and he smiled. "That interests you, does it not? I can lead you directly to them."

Leon looked at D, sharply. "Is this another 'Kami' thing?"

"Yes."

Shigure-

Somehow, entering the petshop had made Shigure's numbness vanish. He'd felt very little since his confrontation with Hatori. There was something about the petshop that made everything clear. With terrible lucidity Shigure felt everything. He felt it so suddenly and so fiercely that he let out a gasp as a chill ran through his body and his hands began to shake. Rage burned at him along side with bitter terror. They had dared to put the head of the family in danger! It would have been wise for Shigure to calm himself. "Fix me."

"I beg your pardon? You seem to be a bit upset. Certainly you can not be fixed as you are not broken. You were created this way. For you, it is natural."

Shigure didn't appreciate the little smirk the Kami wore or the amused tone of voice. "Just do it. Whatever you have to do. Taking away the human part will make me stronger, won't it? Do it to me."

"May I ask the cause for this sudden and urgent request? It can be done at any time. Surely, there is time to wait."

"No. I need this! It has to be now!"

"Are you certain?" The Kami asked. "This is not a step to take lightly."

"I haven't a choice, anymore." Shigure hadn't ever wanted to return to the petshop. When he'd left, his only thoughts had been of disappearing. "It needs to be done."

The cloaked Kami chuckled, again. He seemed to do a lot of that. "There is always a choice."

"Fine. Then there isn't a better choice. Please, do it." Shigure wanted to be away. The sooner this ordeal was done, the sooner he could find the missing family. The sooner he could be at Akito's side.

"As you wish." The Kami held out his hands, palms up. "The choice is yours."

The Kami's hands, when Shigure took them, were cool to the touch. However, under the surface, Shigure was sure he could feel a warmth pulsing under the Kami's flesh. The warmth seeped into Shigure's skin.

Shortly later-

Unsteadily, Shigure made his way out of the petshop.

The first thing he noticed was his own reflection in the window of the next store over. He was still himself but…different. His hair had grown several inches and was wiry and stiff. His face was wide and square while his body was stocky and muscular. His clothes didn't fit any longer.

It staggered him, the way the world smelled. All of his life, Shigure had known that his sense of smell was superior to everyone around him. He could even smell when his family was sick. He had known when Akira had been dying. He had never questioned his nose, but what he experienced as he stepped out of the petshop was indescribable.

He was nearly overwhelmed by the information he was collecting solely though his nose. It was enough to leave him wide-eyed and stunned until Hatori took hold of his arm. It wasn't a surprise. Shigure had known that it was Hatori coming towards him long before Hatori had actually touched him. Even now, without a drop of human blood in his veins, there was something unmistakable about Hatori's scent.

Shigure hadn't realized that he was suddenly short on top of everything else. He had to look up at Hatori and that was a strange sensation.

"Where have you been!" Hatori demanded. His triad stopped short when he realized something. He stared at Shigure and actually took a step backwards. Hatori looked to the side and his eyes landed on the doorway that led down to Count D's petshop. "Ah."

"Home." Shigure took hold of Hatori's sleeve and gave it a little tug. "Home. We have to go home." Not that home turned out to be in such a good shape. One of the Black Scorpion children met them at the gate. Shigure remembered the boy's face, but not his name. The boy had a wild look in his eyes, but held himself as calmly as ever. He looked at them both, but stepped aside.

"Omi," Hatori said. "Any word? Nod or shake your head."

Omi, the boy, shook his head slowly.

Shigure could smell what had happened. He smelled unfamiliar people and gun oil. He smelled blood and salty tears.

Kagura was crying on the front step of Akito's house. She had her hands clenched tightly on her lap and her jaw set while tears were drying on her cheeks. "I should have been stronger! Those cowardly toads. I'll rip them apart!" Then she took a deep breath and dissolved into fresh tears.

"She took her responsibility seriously." Hatori murmured. "She blames herself for not being there when Arisa-san was taken."

Shigure took a moment to kneel in front of Kagura. She reached out and touched his face. "You've changed."

"Yes."

"Will you find them?"

"Yes."

Kagura nodded somberly. "Good. Bring them home. You should have been here." Kagura almost smiled. "Tohru's a Souma, now. Did Hatori tell you? Akito had her adopted into the family. Her grandfather died a about a month ago. Arisa-san, too. Akito wanted the baby born a Souma. She was happy enough to do it. Said her own family was messed up enough that the Souma's seemed like an even trade. How sad." Kagura twisted her hands together on her lap and looked away from Shigure. "It was my job to take care of her." She didn't cry after that, but went back to staring into space. When Shigure kept staring at her, she asked, "What's wrong?"

"You shouldn't get so upset. I'm sure it's not good for the baby."

Hatori couldn't hear him. If he had been able to hear, Shigure was certain that Hatori would have been at Kagura in an instant. Perhaps he already knew. After all, Shigure wasn't up on the latest family gossip. That idea was dismissed at the look at astonishment on Kagura's face. She hadn't known. "Hatori said Kureno was killed. Who's the father?"

Looking stunned, Kagura shook her head. "No one. It's not possible."

"Kagura…"

"No!" Her voice raised to a level of hysteria and her hands were shaking when she took hold of Shigure's arms, imploringly. "You don't understand! There is no father!" She blushed deeply. "I'm a virgin." She let a hand drift down to her still flat stomach and looked at it, horrified. "What will Kyou say? You made a mistake. You must be wrong."

Shigure knew it would only hurt her to lie. "No. There's no mistake. Have Haa-san examine you. Where is everyone?"

"With Akito." Kagura answered, numbly. "Everyone's in there with him. Tohru's with her friend, Hanajima-san. She appeared at the attack and…I'm not sure what she did. She did something. There was lightening everywhere."

Shigure left Kagara, then, but regretfully. She shouldn't be alone, but he had things that had to be done.

Setting off wasn't as simple as it should have been. While Shigure found the scents of the enemy easily enough he couldn't just leave - not when he was only a few yards from Akito. Certainly not when he might never have another chance to see Akito alive.

How long? Shigure looked at the closed door of Akito's house and was almost afraid of reaching out to touch it. Only a few weeks, Hatori said. Maybe less. Maybe just today.

As was only natural for Akito in such a dire situation, he had surrounded himself with his Zodiac. His room was filled with everyone remaining. Yuki sat by Akito's bed with his hands on his lap and his face lowered. Kyou paced angrily around the room, weaving in and out amongst the family from where they were scattered standing around the room or sitting on the floor. Akito was standing at the doorway that led to his back garden. Shigure paused for a moment with his eyes fixed on Akito. How many times had he seen Akito like that? Just standing and staring out at the world. Without turning around, Akito spoke. "You took long enough."

"Forgive me." Shigure moved into the room and, for the first time since his arrival, the rest of the family noticed him. Kyou scowled blackly, as he always did when worried, but Yuki looked at him blankly. That terrible blankness he had worn like armor when he'd first begun living with Shigure. "Akito, I'll find them."

"Yes." Akito turned with a flourish and looked at Shigure with his pale, stern face. "Find them, Shigure. That baby…you promised. The baby deserves a better life than I had. Go! Find them! Bring me my monkey, too!" Akito put a hand to his heart and suddenly gasped. Hatori and Kyou were instantly at his side and guided him into bed where Yuki gently covered him with blankets. "It's almost time." Akito muttered. He looked at Shigure, then slowly turned his gaze around the room. "Soon. Very soon. You must bring them home!"

There was no more time to waste. Shigure spun around and strode out of Akito's house, intending for no more delays. Naturally, there were delays. Kyou followed him and called out just as Shigure passed where Kagura was sitting on the front steps and ran to catch up with him a few yards away.

"Let me come, too."

"No."

Kyou bristled and clenched his fists at his sides. "You can't go alone. I'm the only one strong enough. You can't ask Hatori to…"

"I won't ask him to come. I won't have you come, either." Shigure put his hands on Kyou's shoulders and looked him in the eye. "I will do this alone. This is my duty as yours is to stay with Akito and help Hatori with him."

"I'm strong now. You don't know how strong." Before Shigure's eyes, Kyou changed. He grew almost as tall as Hatori now was and he grew broader. His muscles nearly burst the seams of his clothes and his hair grew longer. His teeth sharpened into fangs and his fingernails became like little daggers. "I can help."

"No."

Kyou pulled at his hair in frustration. "I'm a fighter! Master taught me! I'm the best fighter in the family!"

Shigure smiled and reached up to put a hand on Kyou's neck, affectionately. "I know. You are a wonderful fighter. But I'm not a fighter. I'm a killer. Don't look so shocked."

"You've killed?"

"Yes. It was necessary." He had no hesitation, no doubt. He would kill, again. As soon as he found the people responsible for the abductions, he would kill them. "I know that if you killed someone you would feel terrible guilt. You're such a sensitive boy." There was a time when Kyou would have found an insult in that comment. "That's the difference, you see. The difference between a fighter and a killer. Kazuma would not kill anymore than you or Yuki would. Along with everything else, Kazuma taught you mercy."

Kyou burst out, "But I have killed! At the Pit where we found the kids. Didn't anyone tell you? I…" He hesitated looked away from Shigure. "I killed so many people. I threw them against walls. I…their heads broken open…"

Again, Shigure bemoaned the lack of a psychologist in the family. "And that hurts you. I would bet you still have nightmares about it." Shigure leaned in a little closer and pulled Kyou's head down until their foreheads touched. "I'm sorry you had to go through something like that. I wanted to protect you all so much. But, you have to understand, you did it then because you had no choice. Kureno would have died if you hadn't helped him. Now, there is a choice and I won't let you invite more nightmares. I know you CAN do it just as I know you SHOULDN'T do it. You don't have to kill anyone. You have to stay here and keep Akito alive."

"You don't make this easy." Kyou grumbled.

"Easy is not always right. The right thing for you to do is to stay here and do as Hatori tells you to do." He looked over Kyou's shoulder to Kagura who was watching Kyou, warily. "Go talk with Kagura."

"Kagura? Why…" Even as he spoke, Kyou turned to look at Kagura. He stopped talking and took a deep breath in through his nose. His eyes widened and his back stiffened. "She's…!"

"Yes." Shigure put a hand on Kyou's back and gave him a little push. "She needs you." Shigure left the two staring at each other and went in search of the trail he needed.

He thought that after that he would be left alone. None of the other family had left Akito's house to follow after him. However, Shigure hadn't gone far before he heard Tohru's voice. He paused and looked around only to realize that she was nowhere in sight. It would take time to get used to the enhanced senses.

"Tohru-dear," It was her friend, Hanajima-san. "You can not think to blame yourself. If anything, it was my doing that brought her to harm. I should have come sooner. If I'd gotten here just a little sooner, I may have been able to protect her. I've asked Megumi for help."

"Do you think he can?" Tohru whispered in a voice that sounded to Shigure like she'd been crying.

"Megumi can do things I haven't the power for. I think you don't grasp the level of his power." Her voice, though as soft and sober as always, was firm. "This will be alright. Arisa will be rescued."

"I believe you. I do."

Shigure moved on after that. He was glad Tohru had someone to comfort her. They had known Arisa-san for longer than the Souma's, so their pain was just as great even if the Souma's felt that the loss hit them more deeply. After all, Shigure reasoned. They've only lost a friend. We lose everything if that baby dies.

Another distraction waited for Shigure at the scene of the crime. The guest house's door had been knocked in, torn halfway off its hinges. Standing just outside the door was the boy he and Hatori had seen at the front gate, Omi. He didn't speak when Shigure walked up to the door and looked at him. He just watched Shigure.

The scent of the intruders led through the house and eventually mingled with Ritsu and Arisa-san at a closet. Then, all of the scents left together. It was vivid. Shigure could almost see the scent trail as he followed it back out of the house and began walking. So intent was he on that trail that Shigure almost didn't realize that he was being followed. "You can't come with me."

Omi shrugged but kept walking. "Then I will follow at a distance."

"I can outrun you."

"Maybe."

"You should stay."

"Why?"

"You'll be killed."

"Maybe." Omi kept walking. "But I won't go alone." He lifted part of his shirt to show off the butt of a gun poking out from the waistband of his trousers. "Kureno-Sir's gun. I don't want to die, but I don't want to go back. I like it here. I like hot baths and fish. I like sneakers and baseball. I like Ritsu-kun."

Ah. So, that was it. Shigure knew he should make the boy turn back, stop him as he had Kyou. He was so young. But Omi wasn't Kyou. Kyou had killed out of necessity and desperation. Omi had killed on a regular basis for no more reason than to entertain for years upon years. He'd been delivered into a life where everyone had tried to make him into a normal child and now the people who'd nearly destroyed him had returned to take all that away. So he did nothing to dissuade Omi and let him follow.

Later-

The trail led to a nondescript office building. There was nothing spectacular about it. It wasn't one of the modern high-rises all covered in glass nor was it an old, abandoned building. The parking lot was full of employee cars and Shigure could see people walking around inside the offices. It was strangely…normal.

Shigure knew, without a doubt, that Ritsu and the baby were inside.

"You can still back out." Shigure told Omi.

"No."

"In we go, then." He kept his mind more focused on the scent than anything else. The receptionist very politely directed them to the elevators, but Shigure found that the trail didn't lead to the elevator but to the stairway just next to the elevator. Down they went into the basement and then things went a bit tricky. The scent trail led to a locked door with a computerized lock.

Shigure brought his face close to the keypad lock but although he could tell that fingers had pressed the buttons recently, he couldn't distinguish the sequence. Omi solved the problem when he stared at the keypad then asked, "Are there any numbers that haven't been pressed?"

It seemed he understood what Shigure could do without asking. "Three, eight, and nine."

Omi nodded sharply then began pressing the buttons in seeming random patters. Nothing happened for almost five minutes. As the minutes ticked by, Shigure grew more and more on edge. He wanted to slip out of his human-like form and into a dog's form.

All at once, a soft beep caught his attention. Omi had found the correct code and the door popped open. On the other side of the door were armed guards. They took only a moment to look at Omi and Shigure before they opened fire and Omi, jumping back and to the side of the door, drew out Kureno's gun, as well. He showed no emotion as he darted around the doorframe to shoot then ducked back to safety. Omi did that three times before looking across the door to where Shigure sheltered from the bullets. "I have killed one. There are two left. I have no time to reload."

"My turn." Witness or no, Shigure did what he had to do. He transformed into his dog as easily as breathing. It was so natural. This shape was bigger than he had been, almost double the size of a normal dog. As a dog, Shigure raced through the door and at the two guards. He took the first by the throat and bit as hard as he could. The blood tasted like metal in his mouth. There was no time to wait. Even if that first guard was still alive, he was no threat while he lay there and bled to death. The second guard managed to put a bullet in Shigure's flank while he'd brought down the first.

Shigure turned on the last guard and, just as he'd done to the second one, went for the throat. This one had enough sense to put his arms up to protect his throat. Shigure bit into one wrist and opened the veins there. Like the first guard Shigure had taken down, he would likely die from that wound alone.

Omi came from behind and deftly struck the guard on the back of the head with the butt of his gun. When the man fell, Omi snatched up the man's gun and shot him in the chest. Once that one was dead, Omi went to the first man who still weakly clutched at his throat in a hopeless attempt to save himself. Another single shot to the chest.

"Why make them suffer? Cruelty is senseless." Omi told Shigure.

They found Ritsu and Arisa-kun behind yet another locked door with a dead woman on the floor. The moment they'd opened the door, something small and furry charged through the door, between Shigure and Omi, and vanished down the hall.

Ritsu, with his head shaved nearly to the skin and completely naked - looked up with his teeth bared. He had positioned himself in front of Arisa-san and was crouched, blanced on his heels, and holding a wadded up ball of fabric in his hands. He looked ready to spring at them and, most frighteningly of all, he didn't seem to recognize them.

"Ritsu-kun." Omi was the first one to speak.

At the sound of Omi's name, Ritsu seemed to relax. The fire died in his eyes and his shoulders slumped. He half-fell to one knee and looked down at the woman in front of him. "I smothered her." He looked up, not at Shigure, but at Omi. "I had to. I had to. She said she had to kill Arisa-san. She was going to kill the baby."He clutched the fabric to his chest, desperately.

"I understand." Omi held out a hand to Ritsu to helped him to his feet.

"I can't walk." The color faded from Ritsu as the adrenalin began to wear off. "Can't. Her gun's right there, but…" He held up his hands to show his mangled fingers. "I couldn't use it. I couldn't even pick it up. I want to go home." Ritsu swayed, but kept himself from falling over.

"I'm happy to see you." Omi told Ritsu, softly.

"Are you? I'm such a coward. I was so scared."

"Me, too." Omi said. "I heard your family say you were gone. Taken.I know what they can do. I was scared I wouldn't see you again. I'm selfish that way."

"Oh," Ritsu seemed to realize something. "I seem to still be naked. Sorry. So sorry…"

Hong Kong, China-
Po-Sin Lung-

Po-Sin had never been so angry. Even Indihar had failed him.

He watched, again, the surveillance video that showed what had happened in the basement. The half-dead boy had managed to smother Indihar. How was that possible? It just wasn't. His tools were the best! But he watched for the seventh time as Indihar was killed by a boy who should have barely been able to move.

Something drastic would have to be done. There were too many people involved. His investors were becoming nervous about publicity. Indihar had reported seeing dragons during the clean-up of the stolen tools.

"Tea, sir."

Po-Sin took the tea without glancing at the servant. He kept his eyes on the computer screen on his desk, instead. "Get out."

"Yes, sir."

Po-Sin wanted to forget about the dragons, but Indihar didn't lie. It was entirely possible that she didn't know how to. But…DRAGONS? He almost wished he'd been there. That would have been far too risky, though. That family was starting to get under his skin. The Soumas shouldn't have been so much trouble. Po-Sin had taken time to research them. The head of the family was a controlling, manipulative, psychopath, by all accounts. The family should have been weak despite the wealth they had.

After a sip of tea, Po-Sin leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes to think. He had to protect his interests, but the danger, when he thought calmly about it, was minimum. The few surviving children could be taken care of another time. The tools who'd attacked the Souma estate had nothing about them that would connect them to him, though he did regret that their bodies couldn't be disposed of properly. Still, a few well-placed bribes could take care of any questions about the tattoos. It wasn't a disaster.

Po-Sin took another sip of tea. He would do nothing drastic and continue business as usual. He would have to find another location to use for the Japanese branch. The old one was too exposed. Reopening would take time - perhaps even a months or so. The time displeased him, but there was really no help for it. As it was, he would have to rely on the Chinese branch to make up the difference. More children would have to be found to replace the failed ones…

He opened his eyes to find the servant still in his office and frowned. "What are you still doing here? I told you to get out."

"I don't take orders well." The blonde man replied.

"Well, I'll make you happy then. You're fired."

"That'll be tricky as you never hired me."

"Who the Hell are you?" Po-Sin reached under his desk for the security alert button.

The blonde man didn't answer him. "I've got this friend, you know. He loves tea. Drinks every kind under the sun. He knows every taste, every flavor in the world. He knows what kind of things the taste of tea can hide."

Po-Sin looked sharply down at the teacup still in his hand. He'd already drunk half of it.

"Yeah." The blonde man smiled. "I'd take your hand away from the security button if I were you. They come rushing in here and I won't give you the antidote."

"What do you want?"

"I suppose you'll be dead in about ten minutes." The blonde man smiled at the thought. "I'd really like to see that. Your face will turn kind of purple and then black. You'll foam at the mouth like a rabid animal. Then you'll die."

"What do you want!" Po-Sin threw the teacup at the man and stood up as he shouted. "Money? Is that it!"

The blonde man laughed. He laughed hysterically until Po-Sin thought for certain he was insane. "Money? Man…anyway," He pulled a small vial out of the pocket of his pants and held it up to the light just in front of his face. "If you want this, then you'll give me what I want." He glanced at his watch. "Eight minutes to go."

"Just tell me."

"I want your confession about the Black Scorpions. Yeah, I know all about it. I want you shut down."

Po-Sin looked at the vial of antidote for whatever he'd swallowed. If he'd swallowed anything. It could be a trick. Perhaps he hadn't taken anything at all. Even if he did give up the information, he'd already pressed the security alarm. His people would be running in at any moment. If the man refused to give it up, Po-Sin would have him killed and then take it, anyway. "Fine." He agreed. He would get out of this one way or the other. He quickly wrote the confession and knew that it would never stand up in court.

"Good." The blonde man read over the confession, but looked at Po-Sin again. "And your computer's hard drive."

Po-Sin was glad that he had a stupid blackmailer. As if he would find anything of use on Po-Sin's computer files! Po-Sin was certainly smarter than that. So he physically pulled the hard drive out of his computer and handed it to the man. "The antidote."

The blonde man smiled, then dropped the vial and let it shatter on the floor. "That was just water, anyway."

"It was a trick?" Po-Sin let out a breath, a sigh of relief. There was one less worry.

"Yeah. I'm getting better at lying." The blonde man tossed the hard drive into the air then caught it easily.

The door was flung open, but where Po-Sin expected to see his security, he saw an elegantly dressed young man who looked suspiciously like Doctor D.

"Hey, D." The blonde man gave a little wave. "I'm ready to go when you are."

"In a moment." At his side, there came the strange creature Po-Sin had seen before. The Tou-Tetsu Doctor D had kept muzzled and on a leash. This time, it walked freely and unconstrained. Like that, it wasn't so much interesting as it was terrifying. The little animal was growling loudly.

"D, what's Tet-chan's problem?"

"He is terribly hungry." With long, painted fingernails, he reached down to stroke the head of the Tou-Tetsu. "You do not mind, do you, Leon?"

Leonlooked at Po-Sin very seriously. "You deserve to die."

Po-Sin desperately tried to think of a way to keep the animal away from himself. "I'll publicly confess to everything. The Black Scorpion will die. I'll give everything up. I'll spend the rest of my life in prison."

"You think that makes up for Murakai?"

"Who?"

Leonshook his head and sort of chuckled. "You know, I'll bet he could have been a good kid, too. Poor Murakai could have been in high school now, flirting and studying and learning to drive. Instead, he'll spend the rest of his life in a coma. The difference is that you poisoned his life. Go ahead, Tet-chan. Stuff yourself."

Po-Sin let out a strangled scream when the Tou-Tetsu sprang at him, but it was short-lived scream.

D-

As they left the building, D took hold of Leon's arm. He was so proud. He had half expected Leon to go barging into the building and try to murder Po-Sin Lung. He didn't want Leon to have blood on his hands. To kill someone in defense was one thing, but deliberately plan a murder was more cold blooded than D liked.

Best to let Tet-chan take care of it. The Tou-Tetsu had finally had his hunger satisfied and contently walked beside D.

It wasn't until they were in the lobby of the building that D saw his papa. For all of his newfound strength and power, D quailed. His papa was not a person to take lightly. Tet-chan, he noticed, tried to hide behind D's legs and for that reason, as well as Leon vulnerable at his side, D stiffened his spine.

"D, should I be worried?" Leon was staring straight ahead at D's papa and he slipped his arm around D's waist.

D put his arm around Leon. "No. I will take care of this."

They stopped in front of D's papa and he was the first to speak. "You do not disappoint me." It was not a compliment. "And now you parade around with this creature. How…expected. Even though I know you have finally taken advantage of the present I gave my cat."

D kept calm only for Leon's sake. "The present was MY blood and MY bones. Seeing as how the owner freely gave it to me I can not imagine that you have room to object." It was then that D felt his papa's anger rolling out at him. He felt it wash over him, but it wasn't unbearable. In reply, D allowed his own new power - anger just as great as his papa's - to surge out of his body.

The result was a stalemate. D's papa pulled his power back to himself as did D. They nodded with the barest minimum of civility and D walked with Leon past his papa. "Papa," D commented softly. "Sofu wanted a word with you. Be sure that you find him."

Whatever his papa's response to that was, D never found out.

Leon asked, "What was that about?"

"I amweaker than he just as he is weaker than Sofu. When you make copies of something, they inevitably get distorted and malformed. Such is the way with my family. However," He couldn't help the smirk. "I need no strength to deal with papa. SOfu will keep him away from us as well as the Zodiac family. His patience is at an end."

"That sounds ominous."

"It is a good thing, I promise. Sofu was most upset that papa had disobeyed him, again."