Lilka's eyes went wide, staring in shock at Kelli. Her brain was ripped in two. One half wanted to grab her by the throat and just break all the bones in the little twits neck, the choir of snaps and cracks that would bring a wicked smile to the young woman's face.

The other wanted to know what the hell had just happened, and how this little woman had just grew the nerve needed to insult Lilka's brother right in fornt of his family.

"Wha….what?" owen said, startled slightly.

Kelli stared at him. "You rigged that match, didn't you?"

Lilka looked a her brother, then at Kelli. The girl…the girl is nuts! Owen's Hammer of Mars must have made her go nutty!

Owen looked t her, surprised. "What do you mean I rigged the match? Last time I checked, I was almost beaten!"

Kelli glared at him. "exactly." Everyone watched her as she closed her eyes. "And I quote, 'If only you ahd gotten the hammer of Mars a few turns sooner.'" Kelli paused. "You did have it. You held it, because you didn't want me to lose. You wanted to lose.

Owen frowned, as did Lilka. "Nice theory Freddy, but Velma would have a problem with that guess."

Tressa nodded. "how do you know what Owen had in his hand Kelli?"

Kelli smiled. "Did you really think iw as that stupid not to notice Owen? Your hammer may have made me forget…but I remember now."

Owen looked at her, lickingher lips. "Remember what?"

"Card Trick."

Lilka glanced at Owen, and was startled to see he was pale. He opened and closed his hands, looking at Kelli. What is her point….

"Let me explain, I was doing it for both our…"

SLAP

The hit had barely finished before Lilka had Kelli by the throat, lifting her up to be eye to eye with the girl that had just dared to hurt her brother. "Just because you lost is no reason to make up tales!" Lilka hissed. "You suck as a duelist, deal with it."

But Kelli reached up, prying Lilka's fingers form her throat, letting otua gasp. "Card…trick…let…me…see…his…top…5…cards!"

Lilka dropped Kelli and turned to Owen.

Tressa frowned. "So…Owen couldn't have drawn Hammer of Mars…he was holding it?"

Kelli gasped for air. "Yes." She stood up. "And I want to know why!"

Owen looked at her. "elli, can't we talk about this…"

"NO!" Kelli shouted, the crowd around them now taking notice. "I want to know right now why you rigged the match!" She glared at Owen. "was it because you wanted those extra 50 points? Were you trying for one of the comeback scores and screwed up? Were you just toying with me?" She poked her finger into his chest, hard. "I want to know Owen."

Tressa looed around. "I think we should all…"

"No Tressa." Lilka said. She turned to her brother, her face ice cold. Well bro? Why did you do it?"

Owen closed his eyes. "Because I din't want you to lose." He opened them slowly. "It wasn't fair Kelli. It wasn't fair you and I had to duel. We shouldn't have been forced to do that. And considering that if You lost you wouldn't have made it to the finals…that was like pouring salt in the wound!

So, I came up with a plan. I decided to hold back, not go in with both guns blazing. I took the duel slow, played it cautious. That way, we would both make it into the finals."

Lilka looked at her brother, enraged by what he had just said. But before she could tear into him, Kelli already began to speak.

"Played it slow?" She looked upa t Owen, her face a mixture of anger and hurt. "Do you really think that little of me Owen?"

"What?" owen said, confused.

Kelli lowered her head, her fists clenched. "You go on about how much you care for me…but you don't respect me enough to give it yoru all in a fight? You think I'd lose to you unless your throwing the game?"

Owen shook his head. "No! Kelli, I couldn't treat you like a normal duelist. I mean…." He sighed. "Kelli, your special. Everyone else I face, I enjoy destroying them. But you…I couldn't do that." He letout a short breath, broken. "I love you Kelli…I couldn't hurt you."

'And yet you still think you would have won no matter what." She looked up at him. "You say you love me…yet yoru ego still won't allow you to see that I might be on your level, your equal." She shook her head. "That isn't love Owen, that's pity. And I will NOT be pitied."

With that, kelli turned on her heels and walked away. Owen watched her, his eyes red. "Kelli!"

"Owen…I need time alone right now. Please…don't talk to me." She looked at the jacket around her and threw it off, throwing it over a trash can.

Owen watchedas she walked away, and then, slowly, turned and walked away. He didn't hear Lilka calling out, he didn't hear the crowd. He heard nothing at all as he headed out. Tressa gently picked u the coat and gave chase after her brother, Lilka following, still fuming.

Kevin looked at his cell phone, watching as the number 555-1392 flash. He touched his headphone receiver, turning down the car radio.

"I was listening to that!" Tristan said.

Veronica gave him a glare and he grew quiet, pouting.

"Would you like to buy a time share to sunny Cancun?" The voice said. Kevin smirked.

"No thanks, hell is warmer." He listened to the machine click and he was patched into the Men in Black's main offices. "So, what is going on that you contact me? Can't be something big, you'd hit up the boss."

Veronica chuckled at this. "damn straight they would contact me."

Kevin ignored her as the clerk cut in. "Sir, we have received some mail…we think it's important you read it."

"Why would I care about some mail? We can deal with it later. The tournament just ended and we are heading in now. Did you hear that Kiarou's team is in the tourn…"

"Because sir…only you can open it."

Kevin raised an eyebrow, even though they couldn't see it. "What do you mean only I can open it? Oepn what?"

"The mail sir…it has a blood spell."

Kevin looked at Veronica. "I want you to say that again." He clicked a button, and the enter car suddenly became wired to the MIB headquaters.

"…ur mail has a blood spell on it."

Veronica looked at Kevin, shocked. "That would mean that someone has a sample of yoru blood…or something close enough to it, that they could make a spell that allows onlyyou to open what they have. Someone really wants only you to read that mail."

"Or wants me dead. I think I will be flattered if a demon took that much effort simply to bump me off."

Kiarou shook his head as he took off his duel disk, rubbing his wrist. "Why does everyone in this family have a morbid sense of humor?"

"Because Kevin is one step removed from being morbid." Serenity said with a chuckle. Kiarou gave his mother a sigh, looking out the window.

"Sir…about the mail?"

Kevin clicked a button, and the steering wheel shifted over to veronica, pedals sliding out. He smiled and shifted out of the car.

"Sir, are you…oh, hello sir." All four in the car had to chuckle at this. "There you are."

"Veronica, I'm opening this up in a blast room. If I die, the last of the Jedi you will be."

"Would just just open it you goof." Veronica said, smiling weakly. As much as she hoped he was kidding, she always knew the danger of him dying was there. Always would be. Of course, his powers had been increasing…

Kevin appeared in the car, holding a letter and a small sign. "Turn right here." He cleared his throat. "Dear Mr. Allen. I have gone to great links to insure that this letter receives you and only you. It is a matter of great importance that the two of us meet. I have knowledge about your past that you may find interesting. Please come to the Domino Airport at 4:15 pm today. At 4:18, please open the enclosed sign. All will be answered at that time." Kevin looked at Veronica. "I had every spell and vex traced. This is plain paper, not even a good luck spell."

"So you are going to actually do this?" Tristan asked. "I mean, no offense, but this sounds very suspicious."

Serenity nodded. "Seems like they are pressing all yoru happy buttons: Family, secrets…"

"But they called me Mr, so that pisses me off." Kevin said. "I didn't graduate college at 18 to just be called "mr""

"Owen, say something."

Tressa looked at her big brother as he sat by the window. He was staring out, at nothing she could see in particular. He had been like this for the last hour. The sky was beginning to cloud over, making the afternoon look like evening.

"Owen….please…"

"Don't bother with him." Lilka said, her voice like ice. "He deserves as much for what he did."

Tressa looked over at her sister. "Owen might have made a mistake about Kelli…"

"You're right he did!" Lilka said. She glared at him. "Yoru soft heart let another dueling team in! And a good one!"

Owen didn't turn his head, but still spoke. "So?"

"SO!" Lilka shouted. "SO? Owen, we could have won this thing! But NO! You had to go soft…"

"IS THAT ALL YOU CARE ABOUT!" Owen screamed, standing up. Lilka stood her ground, while Tressa backed away. She looked over as her mother and father entered.

"What is going on in here?" Guy asked, looking at his two eldest children. Tressa stepped behind her parents, the two siblings not taking their eyes offeach other. "This isn't over the whole "Owen rigged the match thing, is it?""

"Yes, it is" Lilka said.

"No, it's not. And you beliving that it's all aobut that only proves to me that you don't understand me or what I care about." Owen glared at his sister and turned back to the window.

Lilka frowned. "Then what is this about Owen? That I found out? That you couldn't get the job done? That maybe you aren't as smart as you think you are? Tell me Owen, what is the problem!"

Owen whipped around. "The problem is that the woman I was dating…someone I was falling inlvoe with…just dumped me. And as bad as tha hurts, it's a million times worse that no one in this family even stopped to consider that. Instead, you're all to wrapped up in what I did in the duel."

"Because that is what is important here!"

"No it's not!" owen shouted. "I just screwed up, and I could care less about the duel. I am upset that Kelli hates me now. I thought maybe as my sister you would see that."

Llika smiled. "Ya, I understand. I understand that you are so wrapped up in this girl that you can't understand that you hurt your own family."

"And you are so wrapped up in dueling that you an't see that I cared for Kelli. It wasn't some fling." Owen grabbed his coat from where Tressa had thrown it and took off towards the door. "I'm getting out of here"

Raia took a few steps forward, watching her son. "Where are you going?"

"ANd when will you be back?" Guy asked.

"I don't." owen said. He looked over at his poarents. "On both counts." With that, he let the door shut behind him. Tressa ran to the door and stopped, herahnds upon it's surface, her head hung.

"Owen… She said gently.

"Oh, let the baby pout." Lilka said, flopping down on the couch. "He'll come back after he's had his fill of whining with no one to pay attention."

Raia turned to her daughter, her face ahrd. "Be quiet Lilka. He is yoru brother, and you will respect him."

"Respect him?" Lilka said, keeping her bodylax yet her voice forceful. "When as Owen ever respected me?"

"I think when he beat that Andrew fellow up." Raia said, glaring at Lilka, suddenly ashamed of the way her daughter was behaving.

Raia had hit a nerve, and Lilka stood up. "Oh,when I don't need his help, he can come in and play the hero. But when it comes tochosing between family and some little slut…"

"You will not call Kelli moto a slut!" Raia shouted. "She is a friend to this family."

"She is no friend of mine. There are no friends outside our family!"

"What do you think this is,the mob?" Raia shouted.

Tressa grabbed her father's arm, tugging on it. "dad, make them stop fighting! Do something!"

Guy looked at the two women. "Raa, Lilka…" The two glared at him, and Guy paused. Raia mouthed, 'butt out' and sent him sliding into the kitchen with Tressa. He looked at his youngest as she backed away as Raia screamed and Lilka, then Lilka screamed right back.

"This isn't right." Tressa whispered.

Guy tried to smile. "come on, they'll work it out…" he paused as he heard Lilka scream something and then a loud crash. He looked back at his daughter, her eyes blurring. Guy frowned. Tressa had always been the most sensitive of the family. She got upset when a person on a tv show was embraessed…let alone someone in her family.

"this isn't right." Tressa mumbled again.

"it will be o…"

"IT ISN'T RIGHT!" Tressa screamed, dashing out of the room. Raiaand Lilka grew quiet as Tressa ran out of the apartment, Guy heading to the door.

"Lilka, yoru room, now." Raia said. Lilka made a sound of protest, but Raia didn't care. She mentally warped her into the room, and Guy sent a barrier to keep her from leaving. He then held out his hand, his guns flying to him. He paused, and with another thought, his sword flew to him as well. It had been a gift from Raia, a long samurai sword to replace the one he had first gotten from his father, a modern day sword that broke too often. Raia had enchanted it so it could never shatter, and even made it that it would never cut something he didn't want it to cut,making it perfect for training. He had dubbed it "Herald", for it would announce his arriva; at a battle.

He looked at Raia, and grabbed a hold of her. "I will bring her back."

"no." Raia said. "She needs time to calm down…Guy…take her somewhere safe,let her relax. She doesn't have school, and the tournament isin 2 weeks, so she needs her rest. I will work on Lilka, get her speaking to me again,maybe Owen too."

Guy nodded and stroked her back. "I'll keep her safe."

"You keep yourself safe." Raia said, smiling. "I'll miss you."

"I'll tell you where we are when I get us settled,ok?"

"Just go!' Raia said, and Guy nodded, and with a thought, he was moving at super speed, blasting down to the street. Raia could barely make out the blur from the window, but still watched as the clouds broke open and it began to rain. "Be safe Guy…and you too Owen."

Somewhere far, far away.

He figure looked at the woman at his side, and gently stroked her cheek. She tried to smile, but still, her eyes gave away her emotions as she helped to fasten on his sheath. She paused as she felt his gloved hand caress her neck, soothing her nerves.

"Midori, I will return." He said calmly. The woman appeared to be 20, and was, but she would always be twenty. On her face her three marks: 3 triangles of gold, one on her forehead and two on her cheeks, all pointing inward. Her war paint, were she male. Instead, they were merely the markings of her house, of all the women of her bloodline.

Just as the man in front of her had his. Though…his were a bit more wellknown.

"I know." She said, stroking his back, feeling the thin black garb. She smiled gently. "How old is this thing?"

"Almost 50 years old. I told you, they made them great back then." He chuckled, then grew quiet. Midori grabbed him and held him tight. "You won't even know I am gone. I will be back within three seconds."

"For my time." She said. "In yours, it will be over 6 months."

He nodded, and held out his hand, his weapon flying to him as he studied it. "I love you Midori."

"I love you too…and good luck with Owen!"

The figure nodded and slipped on the mask, the mask that had once belonged to Geno Roads, when he ahd named himself chaos. It fit like a glove. "I will be back."

And with that, he slashed the air with his weapon,a dn disappeared.

Into the past.