SFFAL: Love Hina Soap Opera

by Cheshire Cat5

SI The ongoing cooperative LoveHina soap opera written by the members of the SFFAL. Chapter 20 as we draw to a close. Some threads tied up, and some departures.

19. The government project: RESCUE?

SFFAL Soap opera: Chapter 19

Sam and the government secret project: RESCUE?

Last week, on 'Love Hina the Soap Opera', we discovered Sam had been Kidnapped, and Mutsumi revealed her secret hidden personality before organising a group to rescue him from the government base.

---

"So - when did you first become aware of your precognitive abilities?" asked the bored looking man in dark glasses.

"My what? I don't know what you're talking about!" shouted Sam, from where he sat tied to a chair.

The first man sighed, again. This was so tiresome.

"Look, we know you're a precog. You changed direction back at the house because you could see our operatives lying in wait for you. The only thing you didn't know is that our precog - who is a damn sight better than you at it - saw that you'd change direction and informed our operatives. So, we not only caught you, but also verified your abilities - and so it is useless to pretend not to know what I mean, you're just wasting both of our time. So, I'll make it easier for you..."

Sam was grabbed from behind, and a cloth held over his face. He passed out, again,

When he came to, he was in a glass cell. A grille was set in the ceiling, and a panel of about a hundred buttons was on the wall in front of him.

"This doesn't look good..." he murmured to himself.

"No, it doesn't!" replied his interrogator, who was sat outside. "You see, in about five minutes, that cell will be flooded with poisonous gas. And, the only way to stop it is to press the correct button. Unfortunately, all the others will trigger an immediate gas release. So, you have a choice - hit the right button, or die. Take your pick."

Sam briefly felt the future, and knew the man was telling the truth. He sighed. He didn't have much choice, really... he reached out, his eyes closed, and hit one of the buttons.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - -

Two lone guards stood in front of a heavy metal gate separating a large complex from trespassers.

They had been on duty for a few hours and were quite bored. Little did they know how interesting things were about to get.

Slowly, a sound became more and more audible until they could no longer dismiss it as nothing. Their eyes travelled down the street to where a figure was getting larger and larger by the second.

"What is that?" The first one asked, squinting to see better.

"I don't know, it sounds like a chainsaw though." the other one observed as the figure got closer and closer.

Further down the street, Al smiled psychotically. This was it - his moment to show Mo-chan and everyone that he wasn't just a clown! He was in his element.

"Special delivery!" he called, as he raced his vespa towards the gate. He was clad in a leather bomber style jacket and his helmet, goggles strapped down over his eyes.

"Is he crazy?" The first guard asked as he and his comrade lifted their guns and pointed them at the swiftly approaching lunatic.

They fired, and the dirt around Al exploded briefly. He threw his head back and cackled for a moment before his front tire hit a pothole and he and the vespa went spinning through the air towards the guards.

"AHHHHHHHH!" the blond projectile screamed.

"AHHHHHHHH!" The guards responded.

- CRASH! -

"Err...nice work, Al..." Keitaro and the party walked up curiously as the American lay under his bike, twitching.

"Rush, you idiot! What are you playing at?" Motoko growled, and hefted the bike off of him easily.

"I...I'm not playing, I opened the gate..." Al said wearily as he stood up on shaky legs.

"Err...maybe you should sit down Al, that was a nasty spill." Keitaro said in a concerned tone. If anyone got hurt it would be his responsibility, he was their landlord after all.

"I'm fine...dandy..." Al smiled and stood up straight, striking what he hoped to be a heroic pose.

"You idiot, do you think this is a game?" Motoko scolded as she smacked him.

"OW...Mo-chan..."

"We don't have time for this." Mutsumi growled and separated them, "By now they know that someone's here, we need to work fast. We need a team to distract the main patrols while the rest of us go in to save Sam."

There was a short stunned silence at hearing another example of Mutsumi's other, sharper personality.

"Alrighty then, you want a distraction, you got it." Al dug around in one of the saddlebags of his bike and exchanged his helmet for a simple black driving cap with a small gold pin in it.

"I can keep 'em busy."

"Rush you can't honestly..." Motoko began.

"I'll go with him." Maho spoke up swiftly.

"Us too." Sarah spoke for Lance and herself.

The teams quickly split, up with Ryuko also joining the distraction team while the rest of the group went for the main complex entrance.

Ryuko spoke to Ryu-chan, who was safely carried in her backpack.

"Ryu-chan - can you do anything about their computer system?"

"i'm onto it, ryuko!" replied the little mecha-tama. "i've already cracked their outer security, options are to interfere with security sensors or break in to inner systems"

Ryuko considered briefly. "Just disrupt the security systems. We need the alarms disabled, security cameras confused, random false alarms, and so on. Can you take care of it?"

"instructions received!" replied Ryu-chan. Ryuko wasn't sure, but it actually sounded as if he was enjoying himself.

- - - - - - - - - -

"I'll show Mo-chan that I'm serious about this." Al grumbled, as he pushed his bike around the corner of a building with Dizzy perched on his cap.

"Grr."

"Well, you know I've done this before, but she doesn't believe me."

"Grr."

"Yeah alright, gotta keep my mind in the game, we gotta cause a big fuss and...say..." A sly look crossed Al's features as he stopped short and came across an open window.

He pulled himself up to the ledge and peered inside. There were crates of food and drink, and so on - must be the store room.

He pulled himself into the room and walked through, reading the labels on the boxes. Suddenly a look of inspiration crossed his face and he darted out of the door, surprising the guards in the kitchen as he crashed through the cooks and out into the mess hall.

"Scuse me." He shoved a man out of his way and leapt onto a table, kicking people's food and stomping across meals, causing screams and yells of protest.

"Howdy, associated meatheads, my name is Al and I promise you I will out-eat any single man in this room or I shall submit my life's savings to the one who can defeat me."

There was a long unimpressed silence.

"What? You don't recognise me? I'm Alexander Gates, son of the famous Bill Gates." Al pulled on a X-box T-shirt and thick glasses.

There was a lot of whispering and murmuring, and finally a man stood, "I'll take you on, big-belly, everyone knows that people with thin stomachs can hold more than large American bellies."

"Alrighty then - line it up cookie! Taking bets boys - I'll beat this guy flat in no time!"

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

A few moments later Al and the challenger sat facing each other, a large bowl of industrial grade custard in front of each of them.

A good amount of the population of guards in the complex had come to the mess hall to watch the strange competition, many setting bets on the outcome.

"Aaaaaand go!"

SPLAT!

Al leapt onto the table and overturned his custard onto his opponent with a hearty laugh.

"Suddenly, looking at your mug, I'm no longer hungry!" he shouted, and with that the blond went running down the long table and hurled himself out of the window.

"GRR!" Screamed Dizzy, clinging to his owner's arm as Al flew out into the main yard and hit the ground running, criers and curses came from the messhall as men poured forth from the window and doors.

"That got 'em stirred up!" Al laughed, and pressed a button on his watch summoning his vespa.

With a roar and a whoosh the boy shot off across the yard with a angry mob hot on his heels.

"GRR!"

"What do you mean, this is a great idea!"

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - -

Al screeched to a stop kicking up dust in the faces of a small group of guards,

"Hiya boys," he began, "I've been dying to try this button here - care to try it with me?"

The guards blinked in confusion.

"Great! Now, just a tic." Al leapt of his bike and pressed a button with a smiley face on it.

A long pole extended from the bike and over Al, dropping a red dressing curtain around him.

A few moments passed and the curtain rose. Al was clad in a baseball uniform and held a bat.

"Hee hee hee, batter up." Al blew a large bubble gum bubble and as it popped he threw a baseball into the air, slamming it with the bat and bouncing it off one of the guard's heads.

"OW, that hurt!" The guard raised his gun and shot at Al.

"Yikes!" Al yelped as a bullet bounced off his bat. The blond leapt onto his bike and shot off, leaving the five guards in the dust.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - -

"What the hell is he doing? Every time I think I know what he's about to do it changes! Who is this kid?" growled the voice in the operative's earpiece as they lost track of Al once more. The way he was moving, the reckless driving, the seemingly disjointed cause and effect of his plans - it was almost as if Al didn't know himself what he was going to do next.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - -

"Ok, this was a mistake."

"Grr."

"Oh, shut up."

Al and Dizzy had been sneaking back into the food storage department again after the custard incident. Al knew he could cause more trouble with food, but what?

Guards had been waiting for him and now the two were trussed up and hanging upside-down from a long metal pole in the wall.

"Boss will give us a fat reward for this one."

"You sure? I mean, we were practically told when he'd be here and how to get him."

"Ugh!"

"Ugh?"

The guard turned to see that his friend had been felled by a cardboard tube held in the hands of a small American who swiftly turned the tube on him.

Sarah untied Al while Lance stuffed the knocked-out guards into boxes and shut the lids tight,

"We're gonna have to keep you on a leash so you don't get in trouble." Lance teased Al as the blond stood slowly, letting the blood drain from his head.

"Yeah yeah, let's blow this pop stand...wait...!" Al turned and scanned the room before nodding, "Ok, we out."

"What was that about?" Lance asked as they began their swift departure down the halls.

"I just want to remember what's in there in case I get a better idea for later."

"Err, right." Lance was confused, but figured Al knew what he was doing...more or less.

- - - - - -

Al turned the corner and jerked to a stop so sudden that Lance and Sarah didn't have the time to react and crashed into him.

"What'd you stop for!" Lance asked annoyed as he stood up dusting himself off.

Al gulped and pointed. A large group of guards had formed a wall between the party and the exit to the main complex.

"Not a lot of room to hide kids, why don't you put your hands up and we might let you live." The leader smiled a crooked smile.

Lance noticed Al's hand inching towards his keychain hanging on his belt,

"What are you doing?" He whispered.

"When I have them busy, run. Get Sarah outta here, she's too young for this stuff anyway." Al winked and smiled foolishly before pushing a button on his keychain.

Like a chainsaw, the engine of Al's vespa roared to life and it crashed through a door, knocking guards out of the way and screeching to a halt at the side of it's owner.

Al set Dizzy down on the bike and the weasel pushed the button with a smiley face on it.

"What the?"

A long pole extended from the bike and a curtain dropped from the pole hiding Al, only for a moment before it lifted and Al was revealed in his cowboy uniform.

"Alright pilgrims, it's time for a shoot out at the O.K warehouse." he growled wishing he had five-o-clock shadow to add to the effect.

"Are you nuts! You can't take them all on!" Sarah protested but Lance held her from getting close, "Al can handle this, trust him." He whispered, though in his mind he was wondering if Al would be alright.

The guards were laughing and the leader spoke up, "Just one of you against all of us? Pitiful! Alright child, your call."

"Draw!" Al yelled and pulled two pistols from his sides.

One of the guards skilfully disarmed him by shooting his weapons out of his hands.

"That wasn't part of the plan." Al muttered before pointing a finger at the leader like a invisible gun, "Bang." He said quietly.

Lance and Sarah had used the distraction to get behind some boxes, no one noticed but the exit was locked so all they could do was hide and watch.

"One bullet, no need to waste any more." The leader pointed his gun and fired.

The world seemed to slow down. Sarah screamed, and Lance found himself hard not to follow suit as they watched Al give a jerk and fall to his knees, his eyes wide with shock.

Dizzy screeched and threw himself at Al to try and help but Al staggered to his feet clutching a dripping wound, "Nice shot..." He coughed.

Lance wanted to help but if he went out there the guards would mow him down and Al's play would have been for nothing. He felt Sarah sobbing into his shirt as he watched, unable to turn away as his friend moved in a jerky zombie like walk towards the leader.

"You don't quit do you?" The leader raised his gun again...

Al fell towards the leader, who was forced to drop his gun to catch the large boy, "T...tell ma to let Lassie out for me..." He begged the man in the suit before turning and coughing, theatrically.

At this point, Lance began to suspect something.

"A...and tell Tiny Tim I won't be making it home for Christmas this year..." he continued with another cough to the side. He grabbed the mans collar and pulled him closer in a funny voice, "Tell Scotty I do give a damn..." Al coughed once more directly in the mans face before his eyes rolled back into his head and he went limp.

"Get this guy off me!" The leader growled as he sagged under Al's weight.

The silence was broken by the sound of a cheering and clapping audience coming from the boom box tied to Al's vespa, and Dizzy waddling over to Al in a tux handing Al a golden statue.

Al grabbed it and leapt to his feet sobbing "You like me you really like me! I want to thank God, and my agent, and my parents, Hi mom!" Al waved to fake cameras as the "Wrap it up" music began playing and he pushed his way past the guards out the door.

After a long pause the guards realised they'd been had and grabbed him, dragging him back in the room and ripping off his shirt.

"I knew it! The kid's wearing a vest!" Al grinned sheepishly as they pinned him to the floor.

"We gotta do something!" Lance whispered.

"Come on." Sarah slid out of their hiding spot and the two of them sneaked over to Al's vespa.

"You would not believe how often this happens to me." Al laughed weakly as they men trussed him up and pointed at his head.

"Sarah-chu go!" Lance called.

The guards were thrown off as a small blonde child in a Pikachu costume ran towards them with flashing strobe lights on her head, "YAHHHHHH!" She screamed.

Al felt the ropes loosen and he stood, finding dizzy on the ground near him, the two of them raced towards Sarah and Lance, who was dressed as a member of team rocket from Pokemon.

"Not bad, but next time you might try putting her in the Charmander outfit, I think Pikachu was too much for her." Al complimented as Lance carried Sarah, who had been blinded by the strobes she had used to blind the guards.

"How did you know that vest would work, they coulda shot you in the head!" Lance asked as they made their escape.

"I'm just playing this by ear bro, making it up as I go along. It's my strong point." Al laughed heartily.

"You're kidding... please, tell me you're kidding?"

The team slipped out a different exit and continued on, buying as much time as they could for Keitaro and the rest of the gang.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - -

"You've got to be kidding me."

"Grr."

"Alright, you're the rodent."

Spotlights suddenly pointed away from the guard towers and focused on Al as he stood in front of a brick wall.

"You ain't nothing but a hound dog, rocking all the time!" Al sang into a microphone, somehow dressed as Elvis.

Gunfire rang out and bullets tore chunks of stone from the wall as Al screamed like a little girl and went scrambling for his bike.

"Why didn't I see this coming!" He asked no one in particular as he dove behind a parked jeep.

"Let's see now, this one, yeah and how about..." he muttered as bullets riddled the jeep trying to hit him.

Al stomped out from behind the jeep dressed in an oversized panda costume and pointed a large metal pipe at the towers. From it shot fireworks of beautiful greens blues, reds and golds.

"All fear the mighty Panda King!" Al roared as the fireworks blinded and burned the men in the guard towers.

The blond rode off leaving his rodent partner to begin work on an idea the furry one had thought of moments before, Dizzy began to dig a large wide hole in front of the main gate.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - -

"Oh, I'm a lumberjack and I'm okay, I sleep all night and I work all day." Al sang as he ran on top of a large steel drum he had stolen from the kitchen supply room. On it had been pasted a large label reading 'High Explosives'.

He was clad in red plaid shirt and overall jeans, a wool cap and an axe, singing about cutting down trees as he and his imaginary log shot across the main yard.

Most guards jumped out of his way soon enough, many wanted to shoot but for fear of hitting the highly explosive barrel under his feet simply let him pass by.

"What the heck is he planning?" The same annoyed voice asked in the earpieces of the guards watching him roll away. "Its like he doesn't even know himself! I can't see a thing but chaos!"

"Dunno, but there goes our entire custard supply." one guard idly commented as the strange American rolled by.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - -

Mutsumi ran through the base, closely followed by Keitaro, Naru and Motoko. Suu had long ago been distracted and was causing mayhem with her mecha-tamas.

They had so far avoided any major trouble, with the odd guard being taken care of by either a Naru-punch or Motoko's ki blasts, and they were nearing their destination. Their infiltration had been relatively easy, which made Motoko suspicious, however she just put it down to the power of Mutsumi's ability to simply avoid confrontation.

Things became a bit clearer as they burst through the last door into the cell block.

"Ah! You've finally arrived!"

A young man swung around in his chair from the screens he had been watching, and smiled at Mutsumi. Sam was seated next to the man, but he didn't move - largely due to the number of ropes which were being used to tie him into his seat.

Motoko scowled, swung her sword, and sent several waves of ki at the man - which he avoided, without even appearing to notice.

"Now, now, play nice," he commented, smirking somewhat. "I would really advise all of you to stay back there, unless you enjoy pain..." he added, as they started forward. Mutsumi's eyes opened wide.

"Get back, all of you!" she shouted sharply, but not quite quickly enough. Keitaro stepped forwards onto a tile, and briefly flashed into an x-ray picture of himself before falling back into a charred pile.

"Owies..." he groaned. "Not as bad as a mecha-tama, though..."

Mutsumi put on a serious face, and ran forward in a strange, almost random, hopscotch pattern, bringing her up to the desk.

"Not bad," commented the man, idly. "However, it just confirms my suspicions. I thought there was another out there - that's why I didn't stop you all from getting this far. However, you should know that I am far superior to you, and it would be easier to just give up now. I'll allow your annoying friends to leave in one piece, and you can join me in assisting our government. It's good work, and pays well..."

"In fact, the only downside is the total loss of personal freedom." replied Mutsumi. "I think I would rather leave, with my friends. ALL of them," she added, looking pointedly at Sam.

The man sighed. "I knew you were going to say that," he said. "Therefore, I propose a contest to prove my superiority. This will also neatly solve my other problems. Take one of these..." and with this, he pushed over a couple of strange looking firearms.

"These are tranquilliser guns - I could hardly have such an asset killed now, could I? One shot in each. One for each of us. Do you accept?"

"Have I any choice?" asked Mutsumi, as she picked one up, and checked it.

"Not really."

The others could only watch as Mutsumi and the strange man - who could only be another precog - stood in the middle of the floor, and started their duel.

It was very strange to watch. Never once did they actually point the guns at each other - they were pointing in apparently random directions, moving slightly, shifting aim to completely different directions - but never once pointing at each other. Bother appeared to be concentrating hard, as they seemed to be dodging invisible bullets and aiming at phantoms. Only Sam knew what we really going on - they were trying to arrange the situation to produce a future with the outcome they wanted. A simple shot was easy to predict, but a ricochet was harder. If there were a dozen ricochets... then it started to come down to predicting not just where your shot would go, but where your opponents would go. Also when they would fire, since once you had fired you could concentrate on just dodging.

Suddenly, with no warning, they both fired. The anaesthetic bullets bounced from random objects around the room - the chair, floor, ceiling, Motoko's sword... before silence.

Both combatants stood there, swaying slightly. Mutsumi reached up, and pulled a small dart from where it was stuck into her hip. The man's smirk grew wider.

"Looks like you miscalculated, hmm?"

"Ah..." Mutsumi replied, an expression of intense concentration on her face. She reached up, and pulled a Todai textbook from her hip pocket. She smiled, winsomely. "Ara, ara... how did this get in here?" she tossed the book at the man, who caught it reflexively.

"You're good..." he commented, as he saw where the dart had hit the book instead of Mutsumi.

Mutsumi smiled even wider, and pointed down. He looked further down, to see where his small backstep to catch the book had caused him to tread on Mutsumi's dart - which had landed unnoticed millimetres behind his left foot.

"VERY good..." he said, with an expression of total surprise. And then collapsed.

Mutsumi smiled, and went to free Sam. Both of them quickly hopscotched over the electrified floor.

"Don't get too confident," replied Mutsumi, as they prepared to leave. "We may have dealt with one problem, but the base is still swarming with guards. Let's be careful out there!"

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - -

A single guard patrolled the main hallway leading into the complex. Like a machine, he marched back and forth, back and forth. The dull staccato of his boots echoed against the walls, filling the sterile, empty place with a haunting resonance. The only other sound was the slight buzz of fluorescent lights, as lonely and lifeless as everything else.

Frankly, it bored him to tears. The guard was in the middle of playing his latest game, "Don't Touch the Lines." It was a rather complicated affair that involved marching in just the right rhythm to avoid touching the lines dividing the tiles. Some days, when he was feeling whimsical, the guard would imagine that a supermodel would descend from the sky and give him a bag of gold if he marched flawlessly for an entire hour. It passed the time.

The guard didn't notice the stranger until she was right in front of him. His foot slipped, stepping onto one of the lines.

"Aw, for the love of..." He cursed. "Look what you made me do!"

"I beg your pardon?" The intruder, a short female wearing a long coat and top hat, inquired politely.

"You made me step on the line!"

"Oh." She smiled guiltily. "I'm sorry, is that bad?"

The guard sighed impatiently. "Look, would you just get out of my way?"

"Absolutely." She stepped over to the side.

The guard resumed marching until he got to the end of the hall. Then he blinked. He didn't remember anyone else doing guard duty in his wing; certainly no one that cute. The only noteworthy female in the building was Edith the Soup Lady, but she had a rather prominent waistline and even more noticeable moustache.

So this person, this cute girl, obviously didn't belong here. What did that mean?

"Wait a second..." He whipped around, gun drawn. "Stay right where you are!"

There was no one there.

"Eh?" The guard looked around nervously. The buzzing, eerie quiet returned. "I could have sworn..." He shook his head and took the easy approach. "Must be seeing things." With that, he returned his gun to its holster and continued to march.

When he got to the other side, he felt a tap on his back.

The girl frowned. "Pay attention!"

Before the guard could so much as shout, two white birds flew into his face, obscuring his vision. He clawed them off with ferocious effort, but once again it was too late: the girl had disappeared again. But where?

He grabbed his radio. "I've got a problem here, do you copy?" He was greeted by rough static. "Hello? Hello? For crying out loud..."

"Yoo-hoo!" A voice sang from behind. The guard turned around, and saw a flash of black hair and a coat entering one of the rooms down the hall.

He smiled, walking with deliberate steps. That was a dead end, just like the rest. She was as good as caught. The guard kicked the door open, pointing his gun inside. "I've got you now!"

It was empty. "What the...?"

"Oi, stormtrooper!" The girl's voice taunted him. The guard turned; there she was at the other side of the hall, beckoning him playfully. The hat obscured her face, but there was clearly an impish grin there.

This time he ran, giving the door a flying roundhouse. "Freeze!"

Again, empty. The guard inspected it carefully, in case he was just being daft. But there was no mistake: no windows, and only one entrance. There was no possible way for the girl to leave without him noticing. So how did she do it?

He had no time to dwell on the matter, as he heard the girl from yet another room. "Not too sharp, are we?" Before she even finished her insult, the guard was over there and ramming the door open. Yet again, the room was devoid of anyone. The verbal abuse continued:

"Come and get me!"

"How much do they pay you to be an idiot?"

"What's the matter? Tired?"

"I'm waiting to be impressed!"

From every possible space and corner of the hall, the girl threw a taunt his way, only to mysteriously disappear as soon as the guard had his gun ready. Soon his legs were sore, his breath coming in short, painful gasps, and his uniform drenched in sweat. All the marching in the world hadn't prepared him for this hell. As the voice echoed nightmarishly from every door, the guard tried to radio for help again, but once again was met with static.

Slowly but surely, confusion and exhaustion crept into the guard's body. When he felt someone grab his arms from behind and put him into a lock, it took all the strength he had to look up at his captor. It was a large young man dressed in drag, with a black wig and matching long coat.

"I got him," Al said.

"You did?" Lance, in a matching drag getup, emerged from the first room. "Good job, dude. I can't believe it worked."

Sarah, also wearing a wig and black coat, came out of the second room. "That was easy!"

"So that's how a magic trick is done." Ryuko popped out of the third room, taking off her wig and dusting off Ryu-chan. "Ryu, keep the radio scrambler on for a while, would you?"

"okay," the stuffed dragon replied.

"No way!' The guard sputtered in disbelief. "There's no way I could have mistaken all of you!"

Dizzy came out, wearing the same getup as everyone else. "Grrr," he said, shaking his head disapprovingly at the guard.

The guard slumped. "This is impossible!"

"Perhaps to you!" Maho came out from the shadow of one of the corners, where she had been hiding under a white sheet. Her top hat was tilted roguishly on her head, and her two doves settled on her shoulders. The young magician grinned, a chocolate cigar in her mouth, as she carelessly tossed the paper cone she used to throw her voice. "But to Maho, the All-Powerful and All-Knowing, the impossible is just the beginning!"

Lance groaned. "Drama queen much?"

"Silence!" Maho snapped. She coughed softly. "Anyway, where was I... Ah." The fiery, triumphant smile returned. "You have nowhere to run and nowhere to hide! Surrender! The jig is up!"

The sound of a hundred gun safeties unlocking killed anything else she might have said. The gang turned around. They were surrounded, with a wall on one end and a squadron of armed guards at the other. Standing before them was the leader, a tall man who held an impressive weapon in one hand and many sets of handcuffs in the other.

He smirked. "The 'jig' is up, indeed."

"Hey!" Al yelled, causing the guards to all jerk and look at him.

"Ah, good, you're here Mr. Rush." the leader of the group, called out to him. "We've been waiting for you."

"Oh yeah? Alright then, I hate to disappoint." Al smiled though his eyes were hard and cold.

"Go on then, I want to see this crazy costume deal the others have been telling me about."

Al summoned his vespa, and pushed the smiley-face button. The curtain rod shot out of the bike.

"Grab it!" The leader yelled and a group of men leapt on Al and the bike, ripping the curtain rod from the vehicle.

"Not so tough without your costumes are you?" The leader laughed and shoved Al into the circle, where he crashed into his friends. Al, no longer smirking, turned and looked up to the man.

"So, here we are. All of you have been causing quiet a lot of trouble and I want to know why." The guard got in Al's face, "So who sent you?"

"Yo mama." Al smiled stupidly and the guard kicked him hard on the chin.

In a raging instinct, Dizzy leapt from Lance's head where he sat, and dug his sharp teeth into the leg of the guard.

"YOW!" The guard hopped backwards prying Dizzy off his leg.

"You little rat!" The man held Dizzy by his tail and pointed a gun at him, "You first, then your owner!"

"LET HIM GO!"

The guard turned. Al was growling, his eyes red with rage, his body shaking, "Let my friend go."

"Oh, you want him? Come and get him!" The leader taunted.

Al struggled valiantly to stand. The two guards holding him down kept him from accomplishing his goal, but his feet pushed on the ground and he began walking in place. The dust churned under his sneakers.

"Fool." The leader laughed watching Al strain against the burly men holding him down.

"I said LET HIM GO!" Al yelled, his feet moving like he was running. He was kicking up dirt and his legs were a blur; the guards were forced to let him go as they coughed and he charged towards the leader, head down like he had done at the carnival for Motoko's present. "HEAD RUSH!" He yelled as he slammed his head into the leaders gut.

The leader let out a surprised cough, and after what seemed like minutes suspended in air, the man flew backwards and rolled out of a door and across the yard.

Al stood and caught Dizzy (who had been thrown upon impact from Al's attack.)

"H...how'd he do that?" One of the guards asked, fear in his voice. Their leader lay still, out cold from the blow.

"Nice one Al!" Maho slipped some smoke bombs out of her jacket and set them off, disabling more guards with fits of coughing.

Lance had pulled free from his coughing guards and ran at the one holding Sarah, throwing his weight against the guard knocking him down. Two more came at him, and he was able to easily down them with repeated whacks from his cardboard tube.

Sarah took her new-found freedom and attacked the guard holding Ryuko with her stone artefact face, setting the bespectacled girl free.

"Ryu-chan, activate the complex's sprinkler system!" She commanded her PDA, and as she finished speaking the sprinklers all went off, leaving streams of water and mist to obscure the parties' escape.

The leader sat up, winded hacking. His gut felt like he had taken a cannonball to it.

He watched in awe as figures walked out from a cloud of mist before him, walking slowly, steadily, each confident and strong in their movements.

He fell onto his back, "I don't get paid enough to deal with that." He closed his eyes, listening to the spray of the water in the air.

A rainbow hovered in the air above the Hinata distraction team as they ran away from the large amount of guards, lost in the mist.

"ryuko, I am getting a call from urashima-san." Ryu-chan spoke.

"Answer it."

A burst of static crackled through Ryu-chan, and the familiar voice of their landlord spoke through the little dragon. "Guys, we need your help to get out of here."

"We're on our way!"

- - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - -- - - - - - -- -

Kyosuke descended form the ceiling, from where he had watched the last minute of the precog's battle play out. His mission had been to capture the reported precog for the Yakuza. However, once he had recognised Sam, he felt a strange tug of loyalties... should he really sell out another resident? In fact, would it even be possible? He doubted there was any way that he could capture either Sam or Mutsumi, with their obvious abilities.

He had watched silently as Mutsumi took Sam and the others out of the room, and then made his decision.

His mission had been to capture the precog. It didn't specify which one. And, there was one here, neatly tranquillised, just waiting to be taken away. A neat solution all round, he felt.

- - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - -- - - - - - -- -

Keitaro and company held their breath as several pairs of pounding feet were getting closer to the room they had held up in.

Motoko Slid out her sword as the handle on the door jiggled, out in the hallway they could hear other doors being opened and closed.

A click and their door slid open. Motoko struck.

"Hey guys I think I found ACK!" Al took the blunt of Motoko's attack and was thrown bodily by the ki blast against the opposite wall.

"Rush! I'm...you shouldn't have burst in on us like that!" Her voice flipped from concern to scolding.

"Man, is it just me, or she being really cold towards him today?" Lance muttered to Sarah as the two teams were reunited.

"Sam! Good to see you're still okay," commented Maho, even as she stifled a laugh at Al's predicament. The group quickly left the room and started to run for the exit.

"Okay, we have Sam, now we just need to get out of here and..." Mutsumi froze mid-sentence. A quick flash, a sudden image before her eyes, and before anyone could stop her she ran and gave Keitaro a shove, sending him sprawling to the floor.

BANG!

The world stood still, a violent shudder passed through her body and Mutsumi fell to her knees. Her eyes staring, a mix of confusion and shock frozen in them.

"MUTSUMI!" Keitaro lunged forward and caught her, holding her close, tears streaming down his face.

"YOU!" Motoko spotted the solider who had fired and before the rookie could come to his senses to run she dealt him a career ending blow. The man would never sneak up on someone again after the blow she dealt to his leg.

Sam and Mutsumi gently lowered Mutsumi to the ground, as the others either stood in shock or tried to stand guard.

"P...please, Sam...you have to lead them out..." Mutsumi gasped weakly, as a trickle of blood came from her mouth.

"Y...yes sensei." Sam's eyes were full of fury and determination. He was fighting back the stinging tears, he had to be strong for his sensei.

"Mutsumi...why...did you do it?" Keitaro asked, angry and crying as he held her close.

"He would have hit you... there was nothing else to do." she winced in sudden pain. "I want you to know, Kei-kun...I always loved you." She said before closing her eyes. A red pool was slowly spreading against her clothes and the floor tiles beneath.

"I...is she?" Maho asked, her eyes wide with fear, her face pale as a sheet of paper and her body tense.

"...I... don't think so. Not yet." Keitaro said after a moment, he stood up, "Alex, please help me."

Alex nodded silently, and carefully, so gently Al lifted Mutsumi onto Keitaro's back so that he could carry her out.

Naru felt a pang of anger at their close contact but at the same moment felt repulsed by her own jealousy. How could she possibly be thinking such things in such a dire emergency? Still, she felt a great pain in her heart, Mutsumi may have given her life for Keitaro, her love for him was so much she'd throw it all away for the one she loved.

"This is no time to stand about, we are still in danger and if we don't hurry Mutsumi may not survive." Motoko, ever the warrior spoke a flat emotionless tone. She knew there was no point in their standing about mourning Mutsumi if she wasn't even dead yet.

Al cracked his knuckles, "She's right, let's blow this pop stand." He tried to put up a show of false bravado though he was sure no one was fooled, he was just as scared as the rest of them.

"I'll lead, Motoko and Rush up front, Maho and Lance bring up the rear, the rest of you keep on your toes." Sam spoke with a new sort of power behind his tone. "I can do this - she had... HAS faith in me, so I won't let her down. I won't let ANY of you down."

The tense party set off to escape.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

The party burst out the main doors and began their mad run towards the main gates. Sam's powers seemed to have been perfected in the tense situation and he had somehow led them out without running into any of the guards.

"Guys whatever you do don't stop running!" Al gasped as they covered so much land in such a short time.

Lance was about to make a snide comment to the panting blond about how smart it would be to stop, but he felt a sudden change in the texture of ground beneath his shoes.

"What the?" He slid trying to slow down but Al grabbed his shirt and pulled him along, "I said don't stop running!"

The remaining guards who were fit to chase the party came storming out of the complex after them. In front of them was their leader, who had finally decided he needed to see these people for himself, who had thwarted him so much.

Al spun around wearing a cops hat and blew a whistle holding up a stop sign and holding his hand out ordering the pursuers to stop.

The soldiers slid to a stop, flabbergasted, confused and in an overall panic as they started to sink right into the earth.

"What is this glop?" one of them roared trying to pull his gun free to no avail.

"It tastes like custard! We're in custard!" another cried.

Al, who hadn't stopped moving his feet despite turning around, spun and beat feet out of the main gate after his friends.

"How'd you know that would work?" Motoko asked as they fled.

"I watch a lot of T.V." He grinned like a fool and she suppressed a laugh. His expression was amusing but she couldn't forget, nor could any of them that Mutsumi's life still hung in the balance.

Keitaro led them, with a face of stony determination back to Hinata.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Kojiro yawned as he woke up at five o'clock in the morning, his internal clock already responding to sleeping in a bed. It was dark outside still, street lamps still on, and Ema slept nestled on his lap, her mussed hair a spot of darkness contrasting against her pale face. Dungeons and Dragons miniatures were everywhere, as were his Dungeon Forge tactiles; apparently Ema decided to play house after he dozed to sleep.

Kojiro started to rouse himself, and then realized that he didn't have to be anywhere that day. Shucks, he didn't have to do anything but watch Ema, and he didn't particularly want to wake her at 5:02. So, Kojiro did something that he hadn't had the luxury to do for the past 13 years of his life, and proceeded to fall back asleep, unknowing of the missing state of pretty much everyone else.

Five minutes later, all that changed.

The door burst open, and Keitaro came running in, carrying Mutsumi in his arms. Al, Naru, Motoko, Maho, Lance, Sarah, Sam, and Ryuko came running in behind him.

Naturally, the room was quite crowded, and he could have sworn he heard Al swear under his breath as he stepped on a Kobold with a spear. 'SCORE!' Kojiro thought.

"Mutsumi's hurt!" Keitaro whispered urgently, sweeping off the coffee table and laying her on it. Kojiro awoke instantly as the situation registered with his brain.

Kojiro stood, and grabbed something from the side of his bed, his medical bag. In a few seconds, after putting a warm pillow where his lap was supposed to be for Ema to sleep on, he quickly threw on a doctor's coat. He looked at the others.

"This will take about twenty minutes. Please wait. Preferably out of my way."

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

After Kojiro had finished his work, only Keitaro, Motoko and Sam remained in the room.

Kojiro finally looked up. "Total damage: one lone bullet wound, minor, no organ damage. Still, it's a big hole. Probably a smaller calibre. Luckily," Kojiro looked up at Keitaro and Sam, who were staring at him over the stretcher in his room, "you didn't attempt field surgery."

Keitaro tilted his head. "Why would we do that? We're not careless." Kojiro sighed.

"Really? It sure SEEMS that way. You go off, fighting people with GUNS." Kojiro looked at both of them with a new look, one of irritable ferocity. "GUNS. This is JAPAN. Not America, Japan. If you are getting SHOT at, you have picked an enemy." Kojiro paused for effect. "Either the Police, the military, or the Yakuza. This means that A: You broke the law, B: You decided to get 6 stars, or C: You've pissed off the Yakuza."

Keitaro looked even more guilty, if that was possible. Sam, however, flushed angrily.

"Now, just a minute..." he began, before Motoko's hand came down on his shoulder.

"Now is not the time," she spoke, although there was a steel glint in her eyes. "Mutsumi's life has been saved by this man, and so he is due our respect. We should concentrate on her, for now." she bowed to Kojiro, precisely and with not an inch more movement that required. Sam, no doubt reacting to some inner knowledge, nodded briefly.

Kojiro stood. "Mutsumi's asleep, I injected her with anaesthesia. When she wakes up, talk to her. I recommend hospital, personally. It's better than my ability, and they have better equipment. Just don't let her get into the Seventh floor. I knew a girl there. Setsumi doesn't like company." Kojiro turned, and walked out, leaving Sam and Keitaro to talk about it themselves.

"He's right..." said Keitaro, sadly. "I've failed in my duty to protect you all. In trying to help Sam, I caused Mutsumi to almost die. It's all my stupid fault..."

"He is NOT right," stated Motoko, angrily. Not only was Mutsumi the leader, she knew the risks better than any of us. Plus, would it be honourable to abandon a friend in time of danger? I think not. You should cease to blame yourself for this, and instead be proud of your actions."

"You were right, there was no point in getting into an argument..." commented Sam, showing far more maturity than anyone would have expected a week ago. "Plus, if it weren't for him, sensei may not have made it. He deserves respect for that, anyway."

"However," added Motoko, "I will remember this. He judged on nothing but first impressions. That was..." she trailed off, colouring slightly as her treacherous memory brought up several incidents in the past when she had done precisely the same thing against Keitaro.

Together, they carried Mutsumi's stretcher back to her room, where Keitaro and Sam would take turns to watch over her throughout the next few hours.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Kojiro woke up again. This time, when he turned to stare at the clock, it was 8:35. He yawned and rose a tad. He quietly reached out and shook Ema's shoulder, wincing as he felt his joints creaking. Kojiro knew that he hadn't been living as healthy as he could be, what with all the travelling.

"Ohiyo, Ema-Chan." Kojiro said, and Ema groaned a tad and hugged him more tightly.

"Ten more minutes, Oto-san..." Ema muttered as she buried her head into one of Kojiro's anime plushies (Chiyo-Chan pillow, complete with removable pigtails!) and shook her head back and forward in the pillow. Kojiro shook his head.

"None of that, Ema-Chan! Up and at-em! Time to take the world on!" Kojiro suddenly felt a wave of exhaustion, and fell backwards with almost no energy. That's right, he remembered, I overslept. "OK, we'll take the world in twenty minutes." Ema gave a mild yay as she yawned.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

"Ano, Koshi-chun..." Ema asked, a toothbrush in her mouth, while Kojiro shaved his face from the centimetre-long stubble that had already gathered on his face. Ema had changed earlier into a long-sleeved dress shirt, tucked into a pleated, knee-length skirt. Kojiro was wearing a simple green t-shirt and his jeans.

"What can I help you with, Ema-Ch- Aww, nuts, I nicked myself." Kojiro frowned at the blood that was now seeping from his cheek. "And face wounds bleed so much..." Ema tilted her head.

"Everyone's awake but this one girl. Ano, do you know who she ish?" Kojiro furrowed his brow, and counted off the members of the household. After a few seconds, Shinobu's face came to mind, and he nodded. It was already past school starting time, so maybe...

"I'm going to go wake up the young lady. Why don't you go get ready to go, we'll eat breakfast out today." Ema jumped up and down with a 'Hip-hip Hurray!'.

Taking that as a yes, Kojiro proceeded to head down to wake Shinobu up.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Shinobu was dreaming of Keitaro. It was somewhat incredible, what with the sweeping off feet and such. There was a great princess, and Keitaro, and for a moment, Shinobu thought that she was the princess.

The princess was a great sorceress, but one day, she was kidnapped. Keitaro and a small group of adventurers were hired to save her. Fighting through wars and past scores of warriors, Keitaro fought through waves of enemies.

At times, she caught glimpses of the various adventurers. One of them was a rogue, a thief, who looked a lot like Al. Another looked like Motoko, a katana in her hand as she slashed through hordes of enemies. One of them was a dwarf she did not recognise. At one point, Motoko was seriously injured and poisoned. For a time, she was unable to fight, and a different warrior took her place for a time being, to fight alongside Keitaro. He left after she got better.

And yet... there was one character, a cleric, whom healed the group and supported everyone. But Shinobu was never able to see her face...

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

"Hey, Seniorita. Morning, its morning! Wake up. Wake uuuup." Shinobu winced as an eye blinked open and caught bright light. REALLY bright light. "Come ON, Seniorita. Wakey wakey..." Shinobu would have normally had five more minutes of doze before waking up, but normally, someone speaking a mix of Spanish and Japanese didn't wake her up.

As Shinobu turned and saw her alarm clock at past nine, she realised that she was utterly and invariably screamed, getting out of her bed at an incredible pace, falling outwards and to the side, a foot landing in Kojiro's face, whom was sitting right next to her bed.

"I'm late I'm late I'm late!" Shinobu screamed, while Kojiro stumbled backwards, holding his face. Shinobu quickly grabbed some clothes and started to change out of her pyjamas, stumbling to the side as she attempted to change.

"Whoa, whoa! I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" Kojiro shouted, scrambling out the door on a mix of all fours and hunched over running, slamming his head into the side of the shoji door on the way out the door.

After about thirty seconds of hurried changing, Shinobu ran out the door, screaming about how she had to hurry. She dashed downstairs, leaping over a chair and cursing her bad luck. How could it be that out of all these days, this one she was late! There was an important English quiz, and if she was late, her grade might drop! And with it, her chances of getting into Tokyo-U with Sempai...

"Oi!" Shinobu grabbed as many of her books as she needed and shoved them into her backpack, and began hurriedly putting on her shoes. Late, late late... "OI!" Shinobu looked up to see Kojiro waving her over. "Wait a sec!" Why was he trying to stop her? She had school! She might miss her quiz! "Hold on!" Shinobu turned.

"Kojiro-San, I'm really late!" Shinobu said, looking up. "I'm sorry I didn't have time to make brea-"

"What's your school's phone number?" Kojiro asked, raising an eyebrow. Shinobu halted, and took a second to remember.

"199-421-04222." She said, and tilted her head. "Why?" Kojiro responded by walking to the phone himself and dialling the number.

A few seconds passed. "Yes, hello? Yeah, I called to tell you that Shinobu Maehara is down with the sniffles today, so she won't be able to be at school. Yes, we'll call if it persists." Shinobu stared.

"Ano, Kojiro-San, I don't have a cold..." Kojiro quickly pulled pepper out of nowhere and threw a pinch on her nose. Shinobu immediately began sniffling, and then let out a rather cute "Achhoi!"

"Yeah, there she goes again. Yes ma'am, I'll warm up some chicken noodle right away. Uh-huh. Buh-bye now." Kojiro hung up, sighing. "Well, there you go." Shinobu stared. "One day off for you. Don't tell Keitaro I did that for you. Or anybody, for that matter." Shinobu opened her mouth, but Kojiro interrupted again. "Don't worry about it. Everyone needs a day off once in a while. Dad used to let me have one day off in the year himself while I was in school. Just one day to relax and take a break."

"Now, why don't you change out of those school clothes, and go get dressed in something nice. Ema-Chan and I are going to breakfast, so why don't you come along?" Shinobu nodded quietly. "Good. See you out here in ten." And with that, Kojiro went upstairs.

There was silence. And then...

"But, what about my test?"

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

"Shinobu Maehara, Ema Maeda. Ema Maeda, Shinobu Maehara. Meet each other and rejoice." Shinobu, now dressed in an Irish green spaghetti strap tank-top and a pair of Khaki Capris, stared at Ema. "I'm babysitting her. Her father went to a business trip." Shinobu nodded.

"Is that so?" She smiled and bent over to be at eye-level with Ema. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Ema." Ema smiled at Shinobu.

"It's nice to meet you, Shinobu-San." Ema bowed low, and Shinobu squealed and hugged her.

"She's so CUTE!" Shinobu said, hugging Ema tightly. Ema wiggled, a sweatdrop forming on her head.

"A-ano... Shinobu-San, please..." Ema protested weakly. Shinobu realized her current position was prone to cut off air from one's circulation, so she let go.

"Oh, I'm sorry, it's just that you're so CUTE..." Kojiro coughed, and both girls turned to him.

"OK, now, Shinobu, you're new at this skipping school thing, so..." Shinobu blushed and looked away. "Let's do something special to commemorate your new status of delinquent."

Shinobu face-fell. "I'm not a delinquent! I'm just taking a break!" Kojiro chuckled in reply. "Hey!"

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

"'Lo and behold! Where we shall eat our breakfast!"

Haruka stared at the three who had entered her tea house. Kojiro, Ema, and Shinobu were in the doorway. There was silence.

"You're the guy who came with the letter from Minase-San. And aren't you supposed to be in school?" Haruka asked, raising an eyebrow. The store was empty, and a cigarette lay freshly smashed into the ashtray.

Shinobu sweatdropped, and started to stutter as she spoke her reply. "Ano, err, eto, I, er, I'm s-sick." Haruka raised an eyebrow, and Kojiro quickly shook pepper on Shinobu's nose, and she sneezed. "See?" Haruka rolled her eyes.

"And who's the kid?" Kojiro turned, realizing that yet again, Ema needed introduction.

"This is Ema Maeda. I'm babysitting her while her dad's on vacation." Haruka nodded.

"Right." Haruka pulled out another cigarette, but didn't do anything with it. "So, what do you want?" Ema responded.

"Asagohan!" Ema shouted, leaping up and down. Haruka smiled a tad.

"Cute girl." She observed. "Fine, take a seat, and I'll get to taking your order. And writing up the bill." Kojiro turned a tad pale, but pulled out a pair of chairs and seated the ladies.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

"Oh, so you like to draw too?"

"Yeah! It's great for my detective work!"

"Detective work?"

"Yeah, don't you know? The world is filled with conspiracies!"

Plates littered the table as Ema and Shinobu talked, while Kojiro relaxed and finished off a Tobasco-doused plate of eggs and sausage.

"Honto Desu Ka?"

"Honto desu! You know, Oto-san's always caught up in some conspiracy or another! Why, just the other day, he and Mihama-San from that big anti-Godzilla corporation were talking about making another mechagodzilla!"

"You're joking!"

"It's true! Why, I even have the secret development plans here!" Ema pulled out a blueprint from seemingly nowhere, and spread it open. Or, she tried. Short stature and short arms kept her from pulling it open all the way.

"KAWAII!" Shinobu shouted, hugging Ema and causing her to stutter again. Kojiro chuckled as he sipped his tea and turned to Haruka, who walked forward with the check.

"Bill." Kojiro took one look at it.

"NINE-THOUSAND YEN! NINE-THOUSAND YEN!" His face fell into the food.

"My wallet cries as it doth bleed, its radiance defiled in it's loss of power, as it doth be drained, its true glory drained away by the smoky darkness, and as it happen, I understand, and my tears yet canith do not a thi-"

"Oh, shut the hell up and fork over the cash." Haruka said, lighting up a cigarette.

"The guile that you attempt to put on this price tag is truly infernal! I have seen less tricks from Mephistopheles in the Chaos Campaign I ran last year, curse you!"

"Yeah, yeah, now break out the cash."

"May Asmodeus feast upon your money-grubbing ways!"

"And may Black Mage eat your soul along with the marinating of the gluttons, whatever." Haruka took a long drag, as Kojiro pulled out his wallet, an exquisitely leather object with several pockets, with four different identifications, each from different country (Mexico, America, Japan, and Canada), and several pictures of his various family members as well as one of Miyako.

The thing was hand crafted and had his name engraved in it, elaborately woven with a mixture of gold thread and polish.

"It IS my life." Kojiro took out the money and handed it to Haruka, who grabbed a hold of it. There was a moment of silence, and then Haruka tried to pull it. Nothing happened. Haruka yanked. Kojiro held fast. Haruka growled. Kojiro let go.

"That's what I thought." Haruka counted it out. "Why don't you girls go into the other room? You guys seem to be having all sorts of fun. Kojiro," Haruka turned. "Why don't you go get me a 10-pack of cigarettes?" Kojiro sighed.

"I dunno, I'm not quite old enough..."

"I'll let you keep the change." Kojiro looked up at the 10,000 yen note, and grinned.

"Done deal." And with that, Kojiro went out to get cigarettes, and Ema and Shinobu went into the back room to play.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

"Can you believe it?" Shinobu was sitting on the couch absently, daydreaming about Keitaro and tuning out Kojiro's ranting and raving about... something. Shinobu, on the other hand, was trying to figure out what to do about Naru and Keitaro.

Obviously, she realized, short of a miracle, should Keitaro and Naru's relationship be left alone, the two would grow close. She knew that out of all the members of the household, that was the one to be afraid of. Su only thought of Keitaro as a plaything, and a friend. Kitsune liked to make fun of him, but that was it. Motoko was preoccupied with her own problems, though she might become a threat in the future. Mutsumi was a possible threat as well, but Shinobu didn't have enough information to be worried yet. Ryuko wasn't a threat at all, and Maho... Well, Maho was his AUNT. Ewwwwww.

Shinobu furrowed her brow. She needed to take Naru out of the picture, without drawing suspicion to herself, and without detracting the power with the relationship between her and Keitaro.

Shinobu had absolutely no idea what to do. She needed someone who was willing to back her up with this, and wouldn't betray her; none of the girls would fall under the category, and neither did any of the guys. Shinobu sighed and leaned back.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Cody walked quickly towards the front door of Hinata-sou, his kitbag hung over his shoulder, hoping not to meet anyone on the way. Moe trailed along after him, carrying a smaller bag. He had already pushed an envelope under Keitaro's door, containing a couple of weeks' rent and a brief message with some fiction about a family emergency and having to leave quickly.

He sighed. It was the least he could do to try and make some sort of amends.

He was almost at the door, when he heard the last voice he'd wanted to hear.

"So - doing a runner, then?" asked Sam, from where he sat, lounged in a chair. "You could have at least said sorry?"

Cody flushed. "I'm not going to ask how you knew, since I've got a pretty good idea," he replied. "I... I guess I'd like you to know that I never expected things to go like they did."

Sam, uncharacteristically, said nothing.

"Look - I passed on a bit of information, like I was asked to. I thought it was harmless, and it made good money..." Cody sighed at his naivete. "I never knew they'd kidnap you, and I certainly never wanted Mutsumi to get hurt. I guess I just didn't think what might happen..."

"Eh... don't sweat it," replied Sam, eventually. "I know you were just duped, too. You shouldn't blame yourself for Mutsumi - and by the way, she'll be okay, you know. But, with what's happened, you're probably right to want to make yourself scarce. They might come looking for you, now."

Cody looked relieved at the news of Mutsumi, and then worried.

"I've got my route all planned," he started, before Sam cut him off.

"Just a tip, but if I were you, I'd not choose a train until I reached the station. Then change at random for a while. Be unpredictable. Make it a bit awkward, and they won't bother to follow you. I can guarantee there's someone waiting for you at Kyoto, though..."

Cody looked shocked, and then smiled.

"Thanks, man... hey, although I wish it had been different, this whole thing has really matured you, you know? Anyway, ja ne..." and Cody opened the front door.

Immediately, a bucket full of noodles emptied itself over his head from where it had been balanced up in the rafters. Sam smirked.

"Want to reconsider that last statement?" he chuckled. "Call that revenge... anyway, take care!"

Cody and Moe left quietly, the former picking ramen out of his hair as he went.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

"Oi, Lupin-kun!" Maho rapped on Al's door. "Get up! It's time for school!"

A low groan emanated from inside. "Ugh..."

She tapped one fingernail against the wall impatiently. "Don't give me that, you loafer! It's 6 o'clock, and I got up just fine!"

The groan became louder and more irritated. "Ugghh..."

"Al, I'm going to put sparklers in your skivvies if you don't get up on the count of ten!"

"Uggh!"

"One! Two!"

"UGH!"

"TEN! Aiiyaah!" Maho slid the door open with one foot, using the leverage to propel herself inside. She landed with her elbow on the large, man-sized lump in the futon. But instead of striking Al's soft and vulnerable lower back, her arm sank into the futon like it was nothing. "Huh?"

Al opened the closet, appearing like a ghoul from a tomb. "I knew it was a good idea to sleep in here," he muttered. "Leave me alone, you crazy girl." A moment after he shut the door, Maho heard loud snoring.

"Bah!" She scoffed. "If that's how you want to do it, then fine! I'll just go to school by my..."

"Ano," Shinobu said from the hallway. "Dinner's ready."

Maho blinked. "Dinner?" Her jaw dropped in dismay. "Are you telling me... It's six in the evening?"

Shinobu smiled nervously. "I tried to wake you up earlier, but you threw a smoke bomb at me."

"I did? I don't remember..." Maho slumped. "Oh, well. What's for dinner?"

"Grilled cod with mushrooms and omelette rice."

Al burst from the closet, eyes still groggily closed and his hair a frightening mess. "OME-RICE!"

"Kyaaa!" Shinobu screamed and ran away.

"Count me in for some of that!" Al took a deep breath and stretched. "Ah, I feel so refreshed!... What?"

Maho shook her head. "Baka."

- - -

Al tore into the omelette with his spoon. "What a day."

"All fifteen minutes of it, you mean?" Maho stabbed hers with a chopstick. "I can't believe this. I was supposed to see the school nurse today to get a physical. What's the Vice Principal going to say when he finds out I didn't go today?"

Kojiro smiled. "You know, I can do it..."

"You knew there would be consequences, though." Al nodded.

Kojiro frowned. "Um, excuse me..."

"Yeah, like getting shot or something. But I didn't want to miss school!"

"At least you have your priorities straight." Lance ate with surprising poise for someone who had a child hanging off of his eating arm. "Just do it tomorrow."

Kojiro raised a hand. "Hey..."

"The nurse won't be in tomorrow. What am I going to do?"

"I SAID I CAN DO IT!"

Everyone froze.

"Uh." Kojiro coughed. "I mean, I can fill out the form. I have a copy that you can turn in to the school. So I can do it."

Maho raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Sure." He nodded. "I know the procedure."

Naru shook her head. "I don't know, Maho-chan. You and Kojiro-san alone? No offence, Kojiro-san," she amended half-heartedly.

"None comprehended." Kojiro smiled. "Besides, I have an assistant."

"Assistant?" Maho asked. "Who?"

- - - - - -

"Give me your left arm, please."

Maho giggled happily. "Did you hear that? That was so cute!"

Ema, dressed in a small nurse's uniform -with cat ears and matching tail- blinked in confusion. "Give me your left arm, please?"

"Waah! You're so adorable, Ema-chan!" Maho reached out and hugged the little girl as if she were a teddy bear. "The sweetest little nurse ever! I just want to give you big squishy huggles!"

"Please refrain from huggling the help, senorita." Kojiro, dressed in a crisp white coat and stethoscope, waved a finger admonishingly. He closed the door to his room, flipping a "busy" sign onto the knob. "We want to handle this professionally."

"Ah, right, of course." A little reluctantly, she let go of Ema.

"You can huggle me if you want." Al said with a completely straight face. Maho stuck her tongue out at him.

Motoko stood off to the side, crossing her arms. "I don't see why I'm here..."

"The more, the merrier. Right, then!" Kojiro took out a tape measure. "Ema-chan, before you take Urashima-san's blood pressure, I'd like you to get her height, please."

"Okay." Ema placed the tape on the floor, slowly rolling it upward to match Maho's height. But to her dismay, despite the patient's shortness, Ema could only reach up to her nose. She struggled mightily to reach the top of Maho's head with the tape measure, but to no avail. "Rrrrgh! Almost... Almost..."

Maho enveloped Ema in another hug. "Kawaii!"

"Ano, Patient-san!" Ema blubbered. "I need to measure... to measure..."

Al tapped Ema on the shoulder as she struggled. He was blushing slightly. "Um, I was wondering, where did you get those cat ears...?"

Motoko sighed. "Impossible." With effortless efficiency, Motoko pulled Ema away from Maho and set her aside. Then she picked up the tape, knelt down and measured Maho from head to foot. She turned to Kojiro, who was busy reading a comic book. "150 centimeters, Chavez-hakase."

"Hm?" Kojiro smiled. "Oh, I'm no doctor. But thank you."

Motoko sweatdropped. "You're not?"

"Next order of business!" He flipped through a number of pages on a clipboard, finally settling his finger on one. "Let's see... Blood type."

"Blood type?" Maho frowned. "I don't know."

"Ah." Kojiro nodded to himself. "Well, that's amended easily enough." He called Ema, who was giving her cat ears to Al as a gift. "Ema-chan, please get me the sterilised needle set from the back drawer."

Maho's eyes widened. "Needle? Why? Why do you need a needle?"

"Just to prick your skin, so we can get a look at your blood."

"My... blood?" She shivered.

"Ma-chan..." Al frowned. "Are you afraid of needles?"

As if suddenly transformed, Maho grinned nonchalantly. "Ah, you're talking to me? No way! Come on, Lupin-kun!"

"Here you go!" Ema presented a box, which Kojiro opened and removed a single needle, along with a microscope slide and a long, spongy, tube-like object.

Al bit back a startled gasp. "Uh, Kojiro?"

"Yes?"

"Where did you get that?"

Kojiro looked where Al's eyes were intently staring. He laughed. "Oh, this sponge? From the cabinet in the bathroom. Who knew scientific instruments were in there, huh?"

Al sweatdropped. "That's... not a sponge."

Motoko looked down at Maho. "You're afraid," she said matter-of-factly.

"What? What makes you say that?" Maho asked.

"You're grabbing my arm."

Maho blushed, letting go immediately. "Oh. I'm sorry..."

"It's okay." Motoko looked away from Maho carefully. "If you need to... that is, if you really must..." After a drawn-out breath, as if making a decision, she sat down next to her. "You can hold on to me."

Maho looked at her for a moment. Then, in silence, she tightly held Motoko's hand. She felt someone holding her other hand, and looked over to see Al sitting on the other side.

"Be strong, Ma-chan," he said stoically.

Maho smiled. "Thank you. Thank you both."

Kojiro wiped a tear from his eye. "That was great, you guys. Really exceptional." He placed the needle just above Maho's arm. "Okay, on the count of ten. Ready?"

The three of them nodded. He counted carefully, deliberately:

"One, two... ten."

Kojiro pricked the skin of Maho's arm, quickly collecting the tiny red bead that rose to the surface and placing it on the microscope slide. He placed his tools on the desk, dusting his hands. "There. That wasn't so bad, was it?"

Maho smiled shakily, all the color drained from her face. "Very good"
Then she fainted.

- - - - - - - -

Maho awoke to the sensation of being carried. Her eyes fluttered open.

"Motoko-san?"

"How do you feel?" She asked simply.

"Fine... A little light-headed, though."

"Then I will continue to carry you to your room." Motoko said this in a way that brooked no argument. Maho settled on closing her eyes again.

"Where's Al?"

"He had other things to attend to. I had to assure him I would take care of you."

"Oh." Maho felt herself blush, though whether it was from the rebirth of attraction or simple shame, she couldn't tell. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be. You were very brave." Motoko was silent for a moment. "I'm the one who should be sorry.

"I don't know about... what you said to me. Surely you know that I didn't expect it. But I was wrong for being suspicious of you, and I was wrong to say what I did. We live in a progressive Japan these days, and... Well, what I mean to say is... I don't hate you, Maho-san."

Maho chuckled softly. "That's a first."

"What do you mean?"

She opened her eyes in the dark. "You used my first name."

Motoko blushed despite herself. "Look, this doesn't mean..."

"I know, I know." Maho looked at Motoko until she finally returned her gaze. "But thank you..."

Thank you for letting me love you, was what she wanted to say.
But she didn't, of course.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
(Early Evening)

Naru walked to the Kitchen, reading from her notes from a small notebook. She was in her full nerd getup, jacket and sweater and bandanna and coke-bottle glasses and all. She walked towards the refrigerator, ignoring Kojiro, who looked up from his copy of Weapons of Legacy.

"Good evening, Na-" Kojiro stared at her, stopping suddenly as he watched her. Naru pulled out a pitcher of Orange Juice and poured it into a cup. Naru turned.

"Good evening, Kojiro-San." There was silence, as Kojiro stared, and Naru waited. Silence reigned. Eventually, she spoke.

"What is it?" She asked. Kojiro blinked.

"Wha? Oh, err, nothing. Nothing at all. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have go talk to Al." Naru looked at him over her glasses. "Yeah. Al." Naru rolled his eyes and Kojiro picked up his book, closing the page on the legendary Katana that roared, and walked out of the room, past Shinobu, who... had watched the whole thing.

Shinobu saw everything. Including...

Shinobu saw it. A blush. And with that, as if a light bulb had turned on, she had it. Kojiro was the key. With him, she could sever the relationship between Naru and Keitaro; at least romantically. That is, if she played her cards right. She'd need to secure Kojiro to her side first. It would, at the least, make things simpler than pure manipulation. She just wasn't cut out for that.

Shinobu began planning. Secretly. As in secret planning. Yeah. And to figure out on which side Kojiro's loyalties lay...

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Haruka swept the floor quietly. How she managed to occupy her entire day by sweeping the exact same spot was a bit of a mystery. One would imagine that her arms were tired by this point. But from the way she would sigh regularly, and from the blank glaze in her eyes, it was clear that Haruka's mind was definitely not on the task at hand. Not like it mattered, anyway: the only customer the whole afternoon had been Kojiro, and now he was off doing... whatever it was that the tenants did. The month had certainly become livelier ever since they arrived, so maybe he was caught up in some adventure.

And I thought I was too old for that drama, Haruka thought wistfully. Now I'm caught up in it all over again.

That wasn't entirely true, though. They had fallen for each other when Haruka was youthful. As passionate as it seemed, the transformation had been ultimately artificial. And now that she was back to her old self, Haruka hardly felt a thing for that arrogant, impetuous boy. The stirring in her heart rang hollow, and that was how it would stay. All that was left was letting the excitement of the whirlwind die down.

She rested against the broom with a resigned huff. "He was cute, though," Haruka said to herself, allowing a tiny smile to creep through her expression. "In a weird way."

"Cute?" A voice boomed from the entrance. Haruka started in surprise. The drapes covering the entrance blew open, and a dramatic gust of wind carried hundreds of bright cherry blossoms inside.

The voice continued, "Is there a chance that you could be speaking of... me?"

Inside the pink sparkly haze (which had appeared quite from nowhere), Sakata Kentaro emerged, flashing his trademark smile. Wind chimes rang in the distance, as quiet and melodious as a whispered song. "Why, I didn't know you cared."

Haruka bashed him over the head with a chair.

"Do you have any idea how long it takes to clean this place?" She frowned. "Of course you don't. You ditched your job, baka."

Kentaro stood right back up and pointed at her. "I have the right to leave when I'm being sexually harassed by my boss."

Haruka scoffed. "Sexually harassed? Don't flatter yourself."

Kentaro balked. "Don't pretend you didn't have your tongue down my throat just two days ago."

Haruka. "In case you forgot, YOU kissed ME."

Kentaro. "You're right. I'm sorry I lied about being an 18-year-old girl... Oh wait, that was YOU."

"What was I supposed to do, explain that mess?"

"Let me think-Yeah, you were."

"Don't even start! You're so stupid you probably wouldn't have..."

"Oh, so now I'm stupid. Who's the one who made up a story about a Mexican pearl diver?"

"And you fell for it!"

"Excuse me for trusting the girl I fell in love with!"

"Don't be an idiot! You weren't in love with me!"

"You're right! Ai was sweet and kind! You're just a demon!"

"Um..."

"WHAT?" Haruka and Kentaro both shouted at the person who dared to interrupt their civilized conversation. Shinobu squeaked.

"Ah-wah-wah-wah..." She trembled fearfully, tears springing to her eyes. Before anyone else could speak, she blurted, "I'msorryI'lljustcomebacklater!" Shinobu dashed away in panic, flapping her arms like a frightened duck.

Haruka sighed. "Now look what you did."

Kentaro put a hand to his chest in a 'who, me?' expression. "I'm beginning to think I shouldn't have listened to Maho-san about coming back."

"Maho?" She raised an eyebrow, looking at the scattered confetti and (now obviously fake) cherry blossoms. "Is she responsible for this?"

"Huh? No, I bought them myself and hired a random vagrant to toss them in for me"
Kentaro pointed outside with his thumb. "I thought you might appreciate a dramatic entrance."

"Random vagrant?" Haruka peered outside.

Kojiro popped his head into view from the side of the building, smiling nervously. He was holding a big pink bag in one hand and a glitter shaker in the other.

"He offered me 500 yen," he explained with a shrug. "I couldn't resist."

"I should've known." She went inside and sat down heavily. "So what did you want, Ken-kun? Are you just here to fight with me?"

"No. I'm here because Maho made me come. You can do all the talking yourself, thanks."

"Unwise," Kojiro tutted, stepping inside. "She's a lady, not a radio."

Haruka ignored him. "Look, I already said I was sorry."

Kentaro rolled his eyes. "You really think that's enough for what you put me through?"

"Frankly, yes."

"It seems pretty reasonable," Kojiro piped in, taking out a chilled pitcher of tea from the kitchen and pouring himself a glass.

"I don't think so." Kentaro put one foot on a chair for emphasis. "I want you to erase my debt."

"Wow, blackmail." Kojiro sipped his tea. "Ahh, delicious!- I've only seen that sort of thing in adult games."

"You're a clever one, Kentaro." Haruka smirked. "And if I refuse?"

Kentaro laughed. "Well! If you refuse..." He paused, as if suddenly catching himself. "If you refuse..." He looked down. "Huh." Finally, he settled on making a long "hmm" noise, as if the sound somehow contained the secrets of the universe.

"Well?"

He furrowed his brow. "I, uh, don't know."

"That died quickly," Kojiro said.

Haruka rubbed her temples patiently. "Kojiro-san. Please stop drinking the house tea. Or give me 100 yen."

He guiltily finished his cup. "Sorry."

"Anyway." She smiled. "It doesn't matter, Ken-kun."

Kentaro waited for the other shoe to drop. "Why?"

"You'll get what you want. I'll erase your debt." As if raising a white flag, Haruka pulled a pristine cigarette out of a pack with her teeth, flicking a lighter with her free hand. "You're free to leave anytime."

Kentaro repeated those words like a sacred prayer: "I'm free to leave... anytime?" His lips contorted, as if he were about to smile but afraid it would break his face. "I'm free?"

Haruka took a puff. "Yep."

"No more debt?"

She exhaled, leaning back in her chair. "Nope."

"I can go?"

"Goodness," Kojiro rolled his eyes. "You certainly picked a bright one, Haru-chan."

"Kojiro-san."

"Sorry."

"For what it's worth, Kentaro..." Haruka smiled sadly. "I really am sorry. I mean that."

In the uncomfortable silence that followed, she decided to say some more. "And I had fun. You're a good guy, Ken-kun, once you get over yourself a little. Now I want you to live a good life, and try not to do anything crazy anymore, okay? If you can promise me that, we're even."

Kentaro crossed his arms. "Hmph... You really think you can get rid of me that easily?"

Haruka and Kojiro blinked. "What?"

"Get rid of my debt, get me to leave, and you win." He laughed. "I see how it is. Very smart, Haruka-san." He raised his index finger triumphantly. "But it's not going to work!"

"Um, I'm not trying to trick you here..." Haruka sweatdropped.

Kojiro scratched his head. "I dunno, it seemed straightforward enough to me."

"Hah! You'll see!" With a strong flourish, Kentaro turned Haruka's chair so that she faced him, flashing his distinctive grin as he held her by the shoulders. "I'll keep working here. I'll pay off the debt and get myself free without your help."

He dropped to one knee, bringing his face so close that Haruka couldn't avoid his eyes. Faced with Kentaro's intense gaze, it was all she could do to suck in her breath and try to say something. But nothing would come.

"I'll stay, and I'll defeat you," he said in a voice so low it was almost a whisper. "I promise."

With that, he got up and headed for the exit. "I'll be here bright and early tomorrow morning, old lady. Do try and keep up with me."

When they were alone, Kojiro stood up, going back to the fridge for another cup of tea. "That guy was kind of weird... Hey, are you okay, Haru-chan?"

She sat up straighter. "Huh? Yeah. Why?"

"You're all flushed."

Haruka raised one hand. Her fingertips barely had to graze one cheek before she knew it to be true. "I'm going to go buy some cigarettes. Sweep up this mess while I'm gone, would you?"

Kojiro sat down, examining the teahouse. "Why? I think it looks festive."

"I'll give you 1000 yen."

"Unbearably filthy, is what it is. I'll clean it up right away."

"Good."

Haruka stepped outside. She began to run.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
(Later that evening)

Kojiro looked through the medical paperwork. Ema was sitting on the side playing with the miniatures again, making a house using the Dungeon Forge field equipment that he had; using that and miniatures, he used to set up battlefields for Dungeons and Dragons games, or better yet, a D20 version of Shadowrun, the only game where you'd use a rocket launcher to get plate lunch from the L&L across from St. Louis Drive Inn.

"The chain versus the Mom and Pop store, who'll win?" Kojiro asked himself idly as he made a few last adjustments to Maho's medical sheets, signing a few places and resolving to secure the last couple of signatures from Maho before she left for school the next day. A knock rang out from the door.

"Come in." There was a moment of silence, and then Shinobu came in, wearing what appeared to be a gray sweatshirt and a matching pair of gray sweatpants. Kojiro smiled at her. "Oh, Seniorita Shinobu. To what do I owe this visit?" Shinobu smiled.

"Koban-Wa, Kojiro-San." Shinobu looked at Ema awkwardly. "Ano, can we talk? Alone?" Kojiro raised an eyebrow. From the look on her face, she had something she desperately wanted to say. He thought about it for a second, and got up.

"OK." He turned to Ema. "Ema-Chan, I'm going to go outside for a minute with Seniorita Shinobu. Don't break any of the pieces, ok?" Ema nodded vigorously, and went back to having Tordek the Dwarf get reprimanded by Sylvis the Bard for "Being late to dinner."

Eventually, Kojiro and Shinobu stood outside, in the front of the house, breathing in the night air. Kojiro looked around to make sure nobody was within earshot, and walked to the long, long steps up to Hinata. He sat down, and patted a spot next to him. Shinobu walked over timidly and sat down.

"So, Seniorita Shinobu," Kojiro said, turning to her as she sat near him. "What exactly would you like to speak to this lonely vagabond of?" He smiled at her, a smile with no emotion but that of one willing to listen. Shinobu hesitated, and began with the first part of her carefully prepared plan to convince Kojiro to join her Cause(tm).

"Kojiro-San, what do you think about Sempai?" Kojiro stared at her for a second, his face blank. "Ano, Keitaro-Sempai." Kojiro nodded, his eyes now containing recognition. He spread his bad leg out and down the stairs; his laid-back style contrasted sharply with Shinobu's tucked in legs that she hugged close to herself.

"Ahh, he's a nice guy. A tad reckless sometimes, but he seems to be solid enough. I hadn't had much chance to sit around and have a nice, long talk with him though." Kojiro tilted his head. "Why?" Shinobu averted her eyes, and then continued with another question.

"What do you think of Naru-Sempai?" Kojiro hesitated for a fleeting moment, but then spoke again.

"I think that Narusegawa-San is a decent person, from the five or so minutes total I've spent talking to her throughout my three-day stay here." Kojiro said. Shinobu nodded, and there was a moment's pause. "Curious, why? Is there something wrong?" Shinobu blinked at him, and quickly shook her head.

"Oh, no, nothing at all! Sempai and Naru-Sempai are very nice to me!" Shinobu began waving her hands wildly. "Sempai is a very very very good person, and so is Naru-Sempai!"

"Whoa, whoa, calm down there, little one." Kojiro said, raising his hands up slightly. "No need to go nuts, I believe you." Shinobu calmed down a bit. "Good, good. Hyperventilation is bad for your health." Shinobu waited, thinking for one more moment, before she began to speak.

"Do you like Narusegawa-Sempai?" Kojiro blinked, taken aback by the sudden question. "Not like. LIKE." Kojiro raised his eyebrows.

"I, uh, err, I think she's very pretty, but I'm not par-" Shinobu interrupted, with uncharacteristic ferocity.

"I like Sempai." Kojiro stopped instantly. "I like Sempai very much. I love him, as a matter of fact." Shinobu blushed as she said this with the most clear cut conviction Kojiro had ever seen. "And Sempai likes me too. But he also likes Narusegawa-Sempai too. And I don't know if he'll wait as long as he'd have to in order to be with me."

In her mind, she could almost feel her spirit going "Way to break the news gently, fool!" But Shinobu didn't care, she was on a roll. "Kojiro-San, I don't know how you feel about Narusegawa-Sempai, but it seems like you like her very much. I like Sempai very much. We can both benefit if we work together to keep them apart. Sempai and I can be together, and you can be with Narusegawa-Sempai!" Shinobu gave Kojiro that puppy-eyed look. "Will you please help me?"

Kojiro stared at her as if she were the personification of Cuthulhu. There was a long moment of silence, and then Kojiro stood up.

"Let me get back to you on that." And with that, Kojiro walked back into the Hinata House alone, managing to keep his cool until he got into his room.

Than, ignoring Ema, Kojiro collapsed on his bed and hyperventilated until he fell unconscious.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Motoko counted aloud as she swung her bokken in practice, the morning's adventure had fuelled the fire within her that craved battle, her warrior spirit had risen from it's peaceful slumber when she fought, and it roared for more.

She tried to sedate the beast with practice but she was on her second hour of training and it still would not give her rest.

"Ye wiped the floor with victory and puked until ye fell asleep!" A deep bass voice threw off her motions and she paused to locate it's source.

"Rush." She muttered as she spied the fool dancing about, his headphones blocking off all noise as he spun and jigged singing aloud.

"Day true a rope around yer neck ta watch ya dance the jig of death," He continued as he hung up his laundry on the line, Motoko made note of several outfits that seemed to come from his costume stash, a tunic, a pinstripe suit, an oversized duck suit, and Rush himself was clad in a plaid kilt and white shirt, apparently a Irish theme to go with the song he was singing aloud.

She realised he had no idea she was there and sneaked towards him, using more silence then necessary as he couldn't hear a thing over the music and his own booming voice.

With an uncharacteristic smirk she jabbed him in the sides causing him to yelp and jump in the air.

As he fell on his rump the kendoist snickered and he glared up at her accusingly, "That wasn't very nice Mo-chan, you don't see me sneaking up on you like that." though he knew well enough that if he tried she'd probably attack him before he got close enough.

"Your skills of perception are as feeble as your sanity Rush." Motoko said with a superior smirk.

"Oi, you can make fun of my perception all you like but I have a firm grasp on reality, most the time."

"Rush, your head is in the clouds so often they should stick a blinking light on your head so planes don't crash into you."

"Flattery will get you everywhere my dear." he said in a deep romantic voice, and before she could stop him he swept upon her, bringing her into a low bow as one would do in dancing, their faces mearly inches apart.

"Y...you've gotten faster." She blushed trying to ignore how warm and caring his eyes suddenly seemed.

"I figure I've been getting some training, what with living here and dodging your strikes." he said unabashed, as he lifted her out of the bow and twirled her gently, carrying on the dance. A swift twirl, and Motoko felt a rush of cold wind on her skin, but before she could figure out what had happened the twirl had stopped and she was in an elegant red evening gown.

"Rush, you don't dodge my strikes, you allow them to impact and simply count on your endurance to see you through. The only times you dodge me is when you're scared of the blow, there is no skill involved." It began to dawn on Motoko how strange this must look, the two of them dancing about the deck, She had never danced before but Rush was leading and she found it wasn't that hard to follow his large heavy steps.

"Ok, but you have to admit that I did well today, I mean I told you I've done that sorta thing before but you didn't believe me."

The world melted away in Al's mind. He had somehow, in a breath of time, pulled a tux from somewhere and suited up. He looked quite dashing in his own opinion - Motoko would never admit it, but she thought so as well.

"Well, you're alive, and for that much I suppose I can be grateful," A moment passed before Motoko realised what she had said and continued with, "But in truth I still find it hard to believe that you've broken into guarded complexes, you barely have any skill as a fighter at all let alone your lack of stealth and cunning."

There was a considerable wince as Al redoubled his efforts to play out a romantic fantasy. "You wound me true Mo-chan my dear, but I speak only truth, though many at home didn't believe me, in fact I've been suggested mad by my own family, but I'd hoped that you - oh wise and beautiful Japanese amazon - I'd hoped that you at least would believe me."

Motoko flushed red and the beast within her that craved battle let lose a roar that she was sure even Alex could hear. She was embarrassed, and trying to swallow that feeling and just accept the compliment was almost impossible. How could he think that of her, how could he see beauty in her mannish tendencies? She was a warrior, not a beauty.

"R...Rush, why do you say these things, why do you compliment me, what do you want?" She asked, and though nervous her tone was firm, confused, suspicious.

"I compliment you because I know beauty when I see it, and combine that with how kind you can be, like with Ma-chan and that shot." He answered, his face was getting red with his own flustered embarrassment as he and Motoko swung around changing directions, their tango was picking up speed as the moved about the deck, the sun setting in the distance allowing the sky a fresh colour of pink, red and orange.

"Rush, ever since you've come to this place you've done nothing but confuse and enrage me, and in turn I chastise and attack you. How is it that through all that you continue to perform such bold moves such as assuming that I would let you take my hands and I would dance with you?" She asked seeking desperately to understand the American's motives.

"Well I figure whatever I did I deserved it, anyway we've had fun though, I mean what about the movies, the festival, wasn't that fun?" he questioned, eager for her input on what he had thought were good memories.

"Well...yes..."

The duo continued striding and dipping and spinning in unison to a beat that seemed to emanate from the very air around them. Electricity crackled as Motoko felt butterflies in her stomach, her cheeks were warm, was it still from embarrassment or was this from the pace they moved to? It was fast and complicated, but she had no problem keeping up, in fact she pushed for more, she soon became aware that she was leading and Al was following in time. Strangely the beast within her seemed satisfied by these actions, although not true combat there was something powerful in the movements of these two beings.

But as with all things good, it had to come to an end. Alex felt a stitch in his side and he knew he could no more hope to keep up with the pace then he could hope to resolve all his feelings for Motoko in one evening. He took the lead once more and after another elaborate twirl he bowed, leaning his flexible dance partner back far, leaning close to her... this was it, the big finish, time for the suave romantic kiss.

Motoko saw his face approach. Flushed, she opened her lips slightly, and closed her eyes in anticipation.

"WOO HOO, check out the lovebirds!"

The two teenagers heads snapped sharply in the direction of the voice, Kitsune was being helped up the stairs by Naru and Keitaro. The younger two were staring with a mixture of amusement and surprise.

Kitsune was plastered and found the situation amazingly funny.

"We were just...he was...I was...RUSH!" Motoko dealt Al a crushing blow with her knee to his soft gut, leaving him cringing and winded on the floor.

She stomped off, fuming with rage, frustration, embarrassment and - oddly enough - regret.

Al sighed and rolled onto his back rubbing where she had struck him, "Aw, smeg." he sighed.

"Are you ok Rush-san?" Keitaro asked coming over and looking down at the messy-haired boy.

"Just peachy Landlord-san, thanks for asking." Al scowled.

The three of them left him staring up at the changing sky, "I guess I'll just have to try harder." He said to himself with a pleased sigh.

- - - - - - - - - - - -

The sun had already set by the time that the two figures left Hinata-Sou. Despite warnings from Kojiro, Mutsumi was weakly making her way down the steps, assisted by Sam who was also carrying a couple of suitcases.

"Do you think Keitaro will understand?" asked Sam, as he shifted the weight on his back as Mutsumi took a brief rest.

"I hope so. I think so," replied Mutsumi, weakly. "I left a letter to explain some things... including a few extra weeks of rent, since I know you're not able to manage that yourself."

They didn't need to go over any more details. They both knew - all too well - what would happen if they stayed any longer. Sam's cover had been completely blown, and Mutsumi had brought herself to the attention of the authorities, too. There was nothing to do but to move on, and keep moving on at random until their pursuers gave up - which was not likely to happen in the foreseeable future. At least this way, they could keep the people they cared about safe.

"That was a nice thing you did for Cody," remarked Mutsumi, as they moved off again. She'd just rolled a die to choose their next direction - something she'd be doing a lot over the next few weeks.

"Well, I just wanted him to know there were no hard feelings, you know..."

"So you dumped a bucket of noodles on him?"

Sam looked guilty. "Err, ah..., well, I..."

"Don't worry, I think you were being nice," smiled Mutsumi. "I saw what you had in the bucket you ORIGINALLY planned to dump onto him,..."

---

AUTHORS NOTES

Yes, you can run on custard. The BBC has a video clip of someone doing just this available on their website (the last time I looked, anyway). Custard is a quicksand-like semi-liquid that becomes solid under impact.

We seem to be losing people quickly. Sam has left with Mutsumi, and Cody with Moe. We have another four chapters planned, though, so things are not over yet! Will Al get together with Motoko? Who will Keitaro end up with - will Shinobu's sneaky plot work? And what will Kyosuke do now? Not to mention the situation with Haruka, and the case of Haitani and Shirai. How will Lance and Sara get on? Tune in next week...

Things are running late, largely due to my own fault as editor. I am recently a father, and my wife has become seriously ill so I've had to delay updates for a couple of months. Sorry to our readers! (Both of them)