"And I'd give up forever to touch you, 'cause I know that you feel me somehow. You're the closest to heaven that I'll ever be, and I don't want to go home right now. And all I can taste is this moment, and all I can breathe is your life. 'Cause sooner or later it's over, I just don't want to miss you tonight.

"And I don't want the world to see me, 'cause I don't think that they'd understand. But when everything's made to be broken, I just want you to know who I am."

-The Goo Goo Dolls, "Iris"

A/N: I got a lot of really good questions in the reviews for last chapter. However, I cannot answer them without giving important details in the story away. But you'll find out in this chapter exactly what you want to know. I'm sure. o

Chapter 11

The stony streets of Lindblum were blanketed with a thick darkness. A darkness that was only provided late at night after all of the street candles had been blown out. Utilizing this to her benefit, Mikoto slunk through the streets stealthily. Kashiya was following behind her.

"Mikoto!" she whispered as the two rounded a corner. The Genome stopped abruptly and turned to face her counterpart. "Don't you think this is a bit risky? I mean… it's only been three days!"

"What's the worst that can happen?"

Kashiya stared at her, mouth agape. "You're joking, right?" she whispered harshly. She couldn't believe those words had even come out of Mikoto's mouth. Any number of things could happen to her, especially after what had happened just the other day. But, whether or not Mikoto had meant it, Kashiya couldn't find out, because the Genome merely gave her a sly smile and started off again.

"Where do you plan on going? I'm sure the word about this has spread all over the mainland!"

"I'm not going anywhere on the mainland. My house isn't even located around here."

"I thought you lived in Treno!"

"That's my other house."

"Your other house?"

"Yes. And it's somewhere that no one would be able to find."

"Oh…"

It was silent between the two girls as they ran down the alleyway. While turning another corner, Kashiya's booted foot came in contact with the side of a metal trashcan. The sound of the hollow 'thunk' and a cry of an alley cat resonated through the empty streets. Mikoto stopped and turned around to shush her.

"Sorry," the medic replied sheepishly, still running to catch up with her smaller friend. Mikoto was much more agile than she, and the longer they ran, the harder it was for Kashiya to keep up. "But how do you expect to check your airship out?"

"I'm not…"

"But! That's breaking the law! You won't only be wanted because you can use magic! You'll have a warrant out for your arrest because you left without clearan-" Kashiya stopped mid-sentence.

When she didn't finish, Mikoto sighed exasperatedly and said, "What?"

Kashiya pointed a shaky finger over Mikoto's shoulder, and the blond spun around on her heel to look at what she was pointing to, and when she saw for herself, she gasped and covered her mouth, so as not to scream and give away their position.

It took several minutes for Mikoto to comprehend what she was seeing. Without even realizing it, she had made it all the way to the airship dock. There was the Red Rose, in plain view in front of her. But at first glance, she couldn't recognize it. Several windows were shattered from what appeared to have been bricks. Propellers had been ripped off and thrown haphazardly around the airship.

However, the one thing that was the most noticeable, the one thing that hit Mikoto the hardest was the spray painted note on the mast of the ship. "Don't set foot in Lindblum again!" was scrawled across the mast in red paint.

"I'm so sorry, Mikoto…" Kashiya whispered, reaching forward to touch her arm reassuringly.

Mikoto flinched and tore her arm away from the gesture.

"Look, sweetie, I'm sorry, I really am. People are morons, I can't do anything about the ignorance of the masses, okay?"

The Genome turned around, "How do you expect me to get away now? They've destroyed my only mode of transportation!" she seethed. "I don't have enough money on me to just buy a new one!"

"Hey, calm down! If you can just get to Bohden Station, then you can border cross and get to Treno. You have a house there that you can hide away in for a while, maybe you can buy a new airship there…"

"I love your optimism, but if you buy anything in Treno that's not at the auction house, it's because it's been stolen and is being pawned off."

Kashiya bit her lip, her visible eye darting from place to place as she thought. "You know that you're still welcome at my place, right? You might as well come back until we can think of something else."

Mikoto's hands were clenched into fists so tightly that she could feel her nails boring into her palms. "I just love staying in a town where everyone wants to kill me!"

"Mikoto!" Kashiya whispered a bit more harshly. She grabbed the Genome's hands and held them in front of her, "Listen to me. Not everyone wants to kill you. You still have us. We will help you. Just stay calm and let's go back to my apartment, maybe even call up the others, we'll try and make a rational decision, okay?"

Now, whenever Mikoto took in a breath, it sounded as if she was doing her all to not curl up and sob.

Kashiya looked at her with pity, then she wrapped an arm around Mikoto in a comforting way and said, "Come on, let's get back. It's cold out."

"Rain, rain, rain…" Kashiya muttered to herself as she looked up from her chemistry set and out the window. "That's all it's been doing for two days now."

Mikoto didn't say anything. She didn't even acknowledge that Kashiya had even spoken. Instead she continued to look out the window from the chair she had pulled up next to it.

The rain slapped violently against the window and slid down the glass. Mikoto sighed and pressed her cheek against the cool glass panes. She had been staying with Kashiya for almost a week now, and in that time period, she had stayed mainly in the house. Kashiya hardly left either, though she claimed that she never got out much before anyway. She always did her work at home.

While in Lindblum, Kashiya bottled many potions and different illness remedies for the drug store in the Business District, and she was paid pretty good money for it also. Because there was little else for Mikoto to do, she sat around most of the day, reading, and would occasionally label bottles if Kashiya needed help.

With a sigh, Kashiya put down a bottle of a translucent pink liquid, and stared sadly at Mikoto's back. "I know you're down, but you don't need to mope all the time."

"I wonder when the rain will stop…" Mikoto said monotonously, as if she hadn't heard Kashiya's earlier comment.

"Have you ever heard the ancient legend about why it's always raining in Burmecia?"

Mikoto turned away from the window and shook her head.

Kashiya smiled and patted the floor beside her. Nonchalantly, Mikoto sauntered over beside her and sat down. "Well, knowing the state of Burmecia, it's obvious that if any one culture had any sort of legend on rain, then it would have to be them, as the city is perpetually being rained on."

Mikoto nodded in agreement. Now that Kashiya knew she had the girl's attention, she completely set aside her work and cleared the area of floor in front of her that her tools were cluttered across.

"Well, when Burmecia first started to flourish, the weather was always perfect. The air was temperate, not too hot, not too cold. But unlike now, it didn't rain as much as we deem 'normal'. As a matter of fact, one could say that it suffered from droughts because of the lack of rain.

"Burmecia to this day is known for two things: number one being the rain, and two is the infamous league of Dragon Knights. Back then, Burmecia was more docile, much more like Cleyra was fabled to be. But there were still the Dragon Knights. Before the country became so war-torn and battle obsessed, the Dragon Knights were trained to merely defend their people from the constant threat of the Dragons who lived in the mountains they had build their cities so close to.

"Dragons are an ancient species. They're very intelligent and cunning. With all the stereotypes that fly around, one would think that they're a savage and bloodthirsty race, but that's not it at all. Dragons are merely very territorial, much like a dog. When you enter a Dragon's territory, you're asking for a fight.

"The Burmecians were just lucky enough to do that. Their entire colony was built upon so called 'Dragon Territory' because the resources were so rich. Of course the Dragons weren't going to stand for their land being taken away from them without a fight, so there were constant attacks on different villages. Especially the ones closer to the mountain.

"While most of the Dragon Knights stayed back and fought each Dragon that came their way, there was one who decided that enough blood had been spilled on their behalf, and instead went to settle the problem a different way. His name was Celandir. He wanted to do what no Burmecian had dared before. He went to talk to the King of Dragons, Bahamut." Kashiya looked up to make sure that Mikoto was really listening and not just spacing off, and surely enough she was listening very intently.

"For days, he climbed up the mountainside, dodging obstacles and trying to keep out of the sight of the carnivorous beasts that raided the air. He traveled deeper into the Dragons' territory every day, putting his life in greater danger. After almost a week of starvation and roughing the wilderness, he found himself in the cave of the King Dragon.

"He walked down the narrow passageway as quietly as he could, knowing full well that each step he took drew him closer to imminent danger. Soon he could hear the snoring of a large entity. It was difficult to see through the vast darkness of the cave, and Celandir had no idea what he was walking toward until he hit a wall of scales."

"Gee whiz, Kash, you sound like you're reciting a storybook," Mikoto laughed.

"Sorry," the medic blushed. "It's my passion, I suppose."

"You should be a writer," Mikoto smiled, then she motioned with her hand for Kashiya to continue.

"Anyway, so he had definitely ran directly into Bahamut's hind leg. The Dragon roared, emitting flames from his nostrils and demanded, 'Who goes there!?'" Kashiya said in a deep voice to imitate the Dragon's. "Celandir, though nervous, replied, 'It is I, Celandir of Burmecia. I wish to make a treaty with you, great Dragon King.' He bowed low, and Bahamut stared at him all the while.

" 'What is it that you wish of me?'

" 'Only that we can stop the shedding of blood between our brethren. My people have lost many lives, as I am sure your brothers have as well.'

"Bahamut just looked at him for a while, as if debating whether or not to hear him out, or to use him as a quick snack, then he said, 'Speak, mortal, and chose thy words carefully, for if thou sayith something I do not like, then I shall not hesitate to kill thee.'"

"Oh, that sucks for Celandir," Mikoto said softly.

Nodding, Kashiya continued. "So then Celandir proposed that if the Burmecians promised to not take advantage of the natural resources and cultivated the land properly, then the Dragons should promise to stop attacking the mountainside villages. The spilling of blood would stop on both sides. Though he seemed unsure at first, Bahamut agreed to it, saying that if the Burmecians did not keep up with their end of the bargain, they would regret it."

"Ah…I understand now…I think…" Mikoto said.

Kashiya smiled sweetly. "The rest of the story is self explanatory. Celandir got back and told his people of the treaty. For a while, the Burmecians and Dragons were able to coexist. However, after so many years, the new generations began to take things for granted. All of a sudden, they were cultivating much more than they needed to survive and they began to trade it with other countries for warring goods.

"Almost four hundred years old, Bahamut watched as his treaty with the now deceased Celandir crumbled, and to punish the Burmecians for not keeping up with their promise, he cursed the entire country so that it rained nonstop.

"The Burmecians perceive that the reason Bahamut cursed the rain upon them, was to cleanse their nation because it had been soiled with ungratefulness and sheer arrogance."

"So, what you're saying is that it rains to cleanse?"

Kashiya nodded, still smiling. "If you ask me, it's raining in Lindblum to cleanse away all of the sin and hatred that have been so thick in these streets. It's washing away all of the dirty words, threats and scorch marks that have been left by the ignorant that live here."

Wide eyed, Mikoto felt like applauding Kashiya. "You are brilliant, has anyone ever told you that?"

"Not enough as I would like," Kashiya laughed.

"I love how you seem to connect everything with legends or myths."

"Yeah, well, I feel that if we don't know our history and learn from our mistakes, then we are only doomed to repeat it. As you can see from just the other day, some already are."

Mikoto didn't reply, instead she got up from where she had seated herself and walked into the next room of the apartment where Kashiya kept a lot of old junk she salvaged from one place or another. "Where are you going?" Kashiya called after her, but didn't bother to look up.

"Nowhere, just looking around."

"There's not much in there. Not much of any use that is."

Mikoto shrugged and continued to nose her way through the mountains of odd trinkets. Kashiya had a treasure trove of junk and she didn't even realize it. "Do you know what most of this stuff is?" Mikoto asked loudly.

Kashiya sighed and wiped her hands on her jeans. Stretching her arms over her head, she stood up and walked into the other room to join Mikoto in her search. "Truthfully, no."

"This," Mikoto breathed, holding up a clear blue rock, "Is an Aquamarine."

"I know that," Kashiya rolled her eyes, snatching the jewel from Mikoto.

"Do you know what it's used for?"

"To put on jewelry?"

Mikoto smiled and pulled the cerulean jewel from Kashiya again. "This 'rock' was said to have special powers by the Madin Sarians. They believed that the souls of Eidolons lived in certain jewels. It was said that Leviathan made Aquamarine his home, and if one possesses the power, he or she can call forth an Eidolon by concentrating their very mind and will into the center of this jewel."

"Do you think I cou-?"

"It depends on whether or not you believe your ancestors lived in Madin Sari. Even if it was generations ago, if any Summoner was ever in your family, you might have enough power to call forth Eidolons."

Kashiya's mouth was agape. "So you're saying if I have just one Summoner in my family history, I have a chance of being able to call forth Eidolons?"

"Perhaps."

The medic's amethyst eyes darted back and forth between the Aquamarine and Mikoto, as if trying to figure out if there was any truth in her statement. Finally, beaming to herself, Kashiya pocketed the jewel.

"So, do you know anything else about any of the other junk I have in here?"

"Well, let's see…" Mikoto scanned the room and her heart almost stopped upon seeing a box with a family emblem on it.

"I-Is that?" she asked, pointing a shaky finger at the box.

"What?"

Bounding over several stacks of old magazines, Mikoto opened up the small wooden box. The smell of rotting wood and mildew arose from within, but it didn't matter, because Mikoto was looking at one of the things she missed most about Zidane.

"You own a deck of Tetra Master cards?"

"Is that what those are? I bought them at a pawnshop eons ago. I had no idea what they were used for, or how to use them, but they were cheap and they looked interesting."

"Do you have the board to go with them?"

"Yeah, it should be back there somewhere. My friend and I tried and tried to get it to work, but nothing was happening. I figured it was just broken."

"Not broken, you just don't know how to make it work."

"How do you?"

"Magic," Mikoto smiled.

"Oh, wow. Mik, don't you think you're going a bit overboard here? I mean, don't get me wrong, I love you to death, but magic in the middle of Lindblum? That's what you're in hiding from, you don't want to risk having someone find you out while you're staying here."

"Gaians haven't practiced magic in almost one hundred years. They can't even sense it anymore. The ability to sense magic lies in children and animals nowadays."

"Children? Still, don't you think it's chancing it?"

"If children have never experienced magic, they don't know what they're sensing."

"I guess you have a point…" Kashiya chewed on her lip in doubt. "But still, it worries me."

"Don't tell me you've never wondered how to play it."

"I have!"

"Then come on! Let's take it in the living room! I have Zidane's old cards in my backpack."

"Zidane? You have a brother named Zidane?"

Mikoto turned bright red. Great, she thought to herself. She's almost definitely heard of him.

"Was he named after the king of Alexandria?"

"Y-Yeah…" Mikoto smiled uneasily.

Kashiya cocked her head to the side. "You know, this is going to sound really weird, but now that I think of it, you look a lot like the old paintings of King Zidane. You could practically be his sister!"

"Yeah…weird, huh? That's…probably why mom named him that, they looked a lot a like."

Kashiya squinted her eyes and continued to stare, making Mikoto feel very uncomfortable. Mikoto meanwhile pretended not to notice, and instead dug through her leather backpack for the old deck of cards.

"They're good luck. So, we're not playing for keeps," she announced upon pulling them out.

"I see. So you played this with your brother then?"

"Yeah, he traveled around the world and collected all sorts of cards before he died."

"That's really neat. I want to travel the world one day," Kashiya said, a dreamy expression creeping across her face.

Mikoto sighed to herself. She was so grateful that Kashiya changed the subject, she had to be more careful about what she said around her. "So…are we going to play?"

"Yeah!" Kashiya exclaimed, plopping down on the floor and drawing an old tattered quilt around her shoulders. "So how do we play?"

"First of all," Mikoto started as she ruffled through Zidane's old deck, "You try to find your five most powerful cards."

"How can I tell if they're more powerful?"

"The higher the numbers are, then the higher their attack power is. If there are letters instead of numbers then they're really powerful."

Kashiya furrowed her eyebrows as she searched through the deck. "Five, right?" she asked looking up. Mikoto nodded. With a sigh, she pulled five cards out and held them in front of her like a fan.

"So…sum up the game for me and I'll tell you whether or not I understand."

Mikoto sat down her five choice cards and pulled two random cards from her deck. With those cards she explained about the arrows and how battles work.

"Okay, okay…I understand. So…let's see if I can beat you!"

"All right, you can try," Mikoto smiled. She placed the cards down on the floor and put both of her hands on the Tetra board. She closed her eyes and chanted something that Kashiya couldn't quite make out, and suddenly the board was surrounded by a faint light blue aura.

"How do we decide who goes first?"

"Simple," Mikoto beamed, "Blue or orange?"

"Huh?"

"Choose a color!"

"Oh…uh…blue I guess."

Mikoto reached into her pocket and pulled out an ovular stone that seemed to have a side of sapphire and a side of topaz. With a flick of her thumb, the stone spiraled into the air and landed sapphire-side up on the floor beside Mikoto's thigh. "Blue wins. You go first."

"So I just put one of these cards anywhere on the board, right?"

"In any open space that you can find."

Smirking to herself, Kashiya placed down her first card. It was a Zuu. Mikoto looked at the card confusedly and then back to Kashiya who was smirking victoriously. "Is that seriously one of your best cards?" she asked.

"It's the best," the medic stated very matter-of-factly. Mikoto looked down at her hand, which held cards as powerful as Ark, Alexander and Flare. There would be no competition in this game.

"Ha! I win again!" Kashiya yelled, throwing her arms and legs into the air simultaneously.

"This is crazy! I don't understand!"

"You think that you can win by pure brute force…and maybe sometimes you can. But I'm a strategist. I can find other ways to win."

As much as Mikoto hated to admit it, Kashiya had a wonderful point. No doubt that Mikoto had shown Kashiya who was boss the first several times they played, but Kashiya began using the arrows to her advantage, and she was winning purely by claiming Mikoto's unprotected cards.

"If this game was for keeps, I'd have so many cool cards by this point."

That statement couldn't have been truer. By this point Mikoto would have lost all of her cards from Alexander to the Namingway card. Even Chubby Chocobo couldn't hold his ground against Kashiya's horribly evil Hedgehog Pies.

"This is a wonderful game!" Kashiya laughed gleefully. "I can't believe I went so long without ever playing it! I'm damn good at this!"

"Yeah, don't you wish that you lived during a time that they had card tournaments at the Card Stadium in Treno?"

Kashiya looked up and for a while Mikoto couldn't tell if she screwed up again by saying that. But after a few awkward seconds of silence, Kashiya laughed and said, "Yeah, I'd kick all of their sorry asses with my Fangs and Goblins."

"You're sure kicking mine."

"I noticed. It's because none of your high cards have many arrows, and they're easy to claim."

"I figured that much out," Mikoto said just as the phone rang. "I'll go get it."

"Let it ring!" Kashiya exclaimed pulling Mikoto back down by the back of the shirt. "Play another game!"

"Or two or three?" Mikoto giggled.

"Yeah! Come on!"

Mikoto sat back down and played game after game against the medic. The phone rang and rang and rang, as if whoever was calling was desperate. But two games later, it had stopped all together. "Who do you think is trying so hard to get a hold of us?"

"Well, whatever it was about must not have been that important."

"What makes you say that?"

"They stopped calling."

"We didn't pick up the phone."

"Point?"

"Nevermind," Mikoto laughed.

"Let's play another game!"

"Kash, as much as I love to play Tetra Master, my back and neck are killing me from hunching over the board like this."

"Awww…come on Mik! Don't be such a party pooper!"

"I'm serious though, Kash, I feel like if I hunch over this board, even for just one more game, then my spinal column will collapse, and that won't be a pretty sight."

"I'm a medic. I could help."

Mikoto laughed. "No, no more for me. Maybe you can call Seth up and see if he wants to play."

"But that means I'll have to teach him," she whined. "And he's a strategic thinker too. He'll beat me, then I won't get this awesome feeling of victory all the time."

"Then call the twins. I'm sure they'd love to hear from you."

Kashiya made a face that resembled a face someone would make after sucking on a lemon. "I'll call Seth, I guess," she said.

With a weak smile, Mikoto stood up and stretched her back. She felt each and every joint pop from the base of her skull to right above her tail. With an awkward hobble (because she had been sitting cross-legged) Mikoto made her way to the kitchen to make herself some hot tea. As she was heating up some water she heard an odd sputtering sound coming from outside, followed by three honks of a horn.

"That was fast," Kashiya said with a smile. "I just got off of the phone with him five minutes ago."

"Seth?"

"Yeah, he has no idea what he's in for," Kashiya said with an evil grin spreading across her face.

"Lucky guy," Mikoto chuckled as she poured the water into an old chipped teacup.

The horn bellowed a few more times, but the two girls ignored it, dismissing it as Seth trying to piss some poor elderly citizen off. Finally the sound of someone running up the stairs in a frantic manner could be heard. Kashiya chuckled, "Oh, he's pissed someone off."

"And he's running from the fight? That's not like Seth."

"Maybe not, but I suppose it all depends on who's angry at him."

"Very t-" but before she could even finish saying 'true', Kashiya's front door was thrown open and Ryuu tumbled in.

"Ryuu!" Kashiya yelled, "What're you doing here? And where's Seth?"

"You guys weren't answering the phone, I had to come check up on you. I didn't know if you were still alive or what."

"We're just fine, Ryuu," Mikoto laughed.

"I can see that now," he sighed, looking very relieved. "Hey, Mik…ya busy?"

Kashiya and Mikoto traded awkward glances, then the Genome looked back at the brunette and shook her head. "But I really shouldn't leave…especially in broad daylight, it's way too dangerous."

"I know…but…it's been raining for so long…and it finally stopped…"

"It stopped?"

Ryuu's eyes widened in astonishment and with a chuckle replied, "Yeah."

Mikoto ran to the window and sure enough, there was no sign of any rain clouds in the sky. The only reminders of the continuous storms were the many puddles left in the streets. Ryuu stood behind her and put a hand on her shoulder, "What exactly were you two up to if you didn't even notice it stop raining?"

"Playing cards," Kashiya announced, throwing her arms in the air. "And I am the champion!"

"Yeah," Mikoto blushed, "She beat me senseless."

"Oh yeah," the medic beamed, sticking her tongue out. "I rock."

"So, Mik…can I convince you to come with me?"

Still looking unsure, Mikoto looked at Kashiya who in turn just asked, "Where did you plan on taking her?"

"Just around…I was wanting to go for a ride since it finally stopped raining and my motorcycle has been getting lonely."

"Your motorcycle, huh?" Kashiya smirked.

Ryuu turned a brilliant red and snapped back, "Well she's been cooped up in your apartment long enough! She probably wants to get out!"

"Well, stop looking at me and ask her what she wants!"

At once both of the arguing figures spun on their heels to look directly at Mikoto. "Do you think it's a good idea?" they asked simultaneously.

"Well…" she looked at the floor uneasily. She hated it when things were left up to her. In all truth, she really didn't think it was such a good idea, but she wanted so badly to get out of Kashiya's apartment, even for just a little while. "How long will we be gone?"

Ryuu beamed and faced Kashiya looking victorious. "Okay, let's get out of here," he said taking her hand and leading her out.

"Wait, you didn't answer my question!"

"We'll figure that out later!" He got an excited look in his eyes, "Let's just be spontaneous!"

Upon leaving the front door, Kashiya called after them, "Don't forget to call with plans! I need to know where you are and when you're planning on getting back."

"Alright," Mikoto called over her shoulder, and followed Ryuu's brisk walk back to his bike, parked in front of the apartment complex.

He looked at it temporarily, then slowly picked up the helmet and handed it to Mikoto. "I only have one," he said, "So you put it on."

Mikoto's eyes immediately widened. "No, that's okay, you wear it." She wasn't about to take crash protection from him when she knew that no crash could kill her.

"Aw, come on, don't be like that. Just put it on, or we're not going anywhere."

"Then we aren't going anywhere. You wear the helmet."

"But it's been raining for so long!! I was really excited about it finally stopping and going for a ride."

"It's not fair to you if I take your helmet."

"There is no way I'd let a lady on my bike without a helmet."

Mikoto shook her head. "I'm not going to argue with you."

"Please? Come on, Mik. Please? You've been cooped up so long, you need to get out, and you know that you want to!"

"I do, but not if you're putting yourself in danger. We can find something else to do."

"I won't. I've been driving this baby for two years, and nothing has ever happened."

Mikoto was still hesitant, but Ryuu had already straddled the bike and had the engine revved up. "Come on, Mik. Live a little, and let's just be spontaneous today. We can do anything you want, whatever comes to your mind we'll do it. I have plenty of money to spare, so let's just go have some fun." With that trademark smile, he threw the helmet into her stomach lightly, and still doubtful, she hesitantly strapped the helmet to her head.

"You have to promise to be careful," she said uneasily as she shakily climbed into the seat behind him.

"I promise," he smiled deviously, then as soon as he felt her hold onto his waist, popped a wheelie and sped down the street.

"Ryuu!" she yelled, "Don't be stupid!"

"Aw, calm down! It's going to be fun!" he yelled over the overwhelming sound of rushing wind.

"Where are we going?" she shouted back.

"I don't know yet, I guess we'll find out," and with that, sped up and bit more and left the apartments behind in a cloud of smoke and dust.

With all of the wind blowing hard against her face, Mikoto could barely see where they were going. The world blurred past in her peripheral vision, mixing various colors and shapes together until she couldn't make out objects anymore.

They had probably been on the bike for ten minutes when suddenly Ryuu pulled off of the road and into a gas station. "I have an idea, and I'm going to need a full tank of gas to accomplish it," he said upon shutting off his bike's engine.

"Oh, and what's that?" Mikoto asked, throwing her legs over the side of the bike and getting off. She turned and looked at him, waiting for his response.

Ryuu smiled, "I'm getting you out of Lindblum," he whispered.

Mikoto looked at him confusedly, "How?" she finally asked.

"I can get thirty miles to the gallon on this. I can get you to Bohden station, and cross with you into Treno. You know, make sure you get there safely," smiling even bigger, he threw his arms up and yelled, "Road trip!"

Mikoto smiled back at him, "Okay," she concurred. "But what about your parents? I mean…what would they say?"

"They think it's time I moved out anyway."

"But I thought that you supported your family."

"I do, but dad does get pension from the army. They've been thinking of moving into a smaller house anyway, and once Kai and I are out of the way, they wouldn't have to pay for all of our stuff too."

"Well…we have a plan…I'll need to call Kash."

Ryuu pulled the gasoline nozzle from the gas tank of his motorcycle, put it back on its hook, wiped his hands on his pants and said, "Okay, and I'll pay for the gas."

"Wait, can I borrow you for a split second?"

"Sure, for what?"

"Just, stand in front of me while I use the phone. I don't want anyone to see me."

Ryuu chuckled and followed her to the payphone booth. Mikoto looked to either side of her, then stepped inside. She dropped a few gil into the slot just as Ryuu stood at the entrance, then dialed Kashiya's number.

The phone rang and rang and rang, and then finally someone picked up the phone, and Kashiya's familiar voice exclaimed, "Hello! Kashiya O'Malley, Tetra Master Extraordinaire, how can I help you?"

"Hey, Kash, it's me."

"Mik! What's your status?"

"We're going to try for Bohden station, so depending on whether or not we make it, we may not be coming back."

"You're leaving Lindblum!?"

"That's the goal."

Kashiya was silent, and Mikoto could hear her making popping noises with her mouth like she normally did when she was nervous or thinking. "You'll let me know if you need me, right?"

"Of course."

"And you'll call once you get to Bohden, right?"

"Definitely."

"Okay. Please, please, please, be sure to call. Okay?"

"All right. I will."

"It's already five, how do you plan on getting there?"

"Ryuu's bike, of course."

"Would you even be able to make it completely there tonight?"

"I don't know, but we can try."

Again, Mikoto could hear the nervous popping noises. "I don't care what time it is, you need to call once you get there, or let me know if your plans change."

"Will do."

Ryuu turned around and laughed, "Come on Kash, don't be such a worry wart, if you don't let her off the phone we can never leave."

"Mikoto, tell Ryuu to shove it up his ass," Kashiya said, and Mikoto could just see her rolling her eyes.

"I'll call back later, bye."

"Bye, be careful!"

And with that, Mikoto hung up the phone. "Let's get a move on."

"I need to pay for the gas first," Ryuu said, grabbing Mikoto and leading her inside the gas station.

"But Ryuu, they'll see me!"

Ryuu chuckled and with his hand, turned her face so that it was stuck to his side. "I don't want you standing out here alone," he murmured.

"Hey Ryuu, how're you today?" the man at the counter asked as soon as they entered.

"Doing good Mr. F, how're you?"

"I've been better," the man laughed, "Who's this you have with you? Your girlfriend, I presume?"

"Sure is, she's a bit shy."

"I see, no problem. I'm going to need 500 gil for your gas."

"Alrighty" Ryuu dug through his pocket and pulled out the correct currency.

"So, where're you two headed today?"

"We're not entirely sure yet."

The man laughed, "Oh, youth. I wish that I could be spontaneous and carefree again."

"Well see ya around, Mr. F!"

"Goodbye Ryuu! And you too little lady!"

Ryuu waved and then lead Mikoto out of the small building. "Ready to go?" he asked, getting back on his motorcycle.

"Yeah," she replied quietly, strapping on her helmet. Cautiously, she mounted the bike behind him, and once again, he revved the engine and tore off down the road.

It really did feel good to Mikoto to finally be out of the walls of Kashiya's house and as always, her entire spirit felt elevated just being around Ryuu.

"How far is Bohden Station from here?" Mikoto yelled over the hum of the engine.

"About five hours," Ryuu shouted back.

Five hours didn't seem so long.

That is until she spent an hour on the back of his bike, going extremely fast. When she could no longer feel her legs, or anything else from the waist down she knew that the next four hours would be long and not so pleasant.

After being on the bike for two hours, the sun started to set and Ryuu pulled off of the side of the road so that the two could sit on the grass and watch it go down. Being an autumn day, it was starting to get very cool out. Mikoto sported Ryuu's jacket while he wore a sweatshirt.

With a smile, Ryuu helped Mikoto up and they started up the hill to where Ryuu parked his motorcycle.

"At this rate, we'll be lucky to make it to Bohden by midnight," he said, helping Mikoto strap on her helmet. "And with the time difference, it'll be almost one in Lindblum once you call Kashiya."

"Well, she did say it didn't matter what time."

"True."

The two mounted the bike again, and again went on down the highway. Now Ryuu wasn't quite so reckless and it was more like a peaceful ride. The cold air made Mikoto's honey blond hair whip against her face violently, and stung her eyes. Tiredly, she hugged Ryuu's waist and buried her head between his shoulder blades.

For the longest time she fell in and out of sleep, and was only awoken due to city lights or Ryuu yelling something at her.

"We won't be able to stop for food if we want to make it to Bohden before midnight," he announced at one point. "But we can get something after we find ourselves a place to stay."

"Okay," Mikoto replied groggily.

"Are you sleeping back there? You sure aren't moving much," she heard him laugh.

"No, I'm awake."

And with that she fell asleep again. She got in a good long nap, when she was jolted by Ryuu reaching behind her and hitting her to get her attention.

"Huh?" she asked, half-awake.

"Are you even alive back there?"

She groaned, "Unfortunately."

"Well, then you can at least talk. It gets boring just driving, you know?"

The Genome groaned. "But I'm tired."

"Aha! So you were sleeping."

"Only a little," she yawned and sat up, "How much longer until we get there?"

"I say that from here we maybe have another ten minutes."

"Are you serious?" she exclaimed, sitting completely erect. "How long was I sleeping?"

"For a good portion of the ride, I'll say. And do you realize you say the funniest things while you sleep?"

"How can you hear me over the darn motor?"

"Well at one point you were yelling something in your sleep. I don't even remember what it was, but it was crazy."

"Great," she muttered to herself. "So I've been talking crazy talk in my sleep, is there anything else I should know about?"

"Well, as I found out, you do tend to drool a bit when you sleep."

"Are you serious!?"

"No, no, no…that was just a joke. I'm kidding, I'm kid-"

But before he could finish his sentence, Mikoto saw two small glowing eyes run out in the middle of the street. "Ryuu! Look out!" she screamed, interrupting him.

"What?" he asked confusedly, but when he saw the animal also, he swerved to the side of the road, only to hit a puddle left over from the rain storms from all week. Water sprayed up on both sides of the bike, soaking them both.

Out of instinct, he stepped on the brakes, causing the bike to hydroplane. He couldn't stop it, the bike only continued it's ride forward, still going extremely fast.

Mikoto was panicking, she didn't know what to do or if she could do anything in enough time. Everything seemed to be happening in play by play mode. The world seemed to slow down and she saw things differently. She could think her way through this.

A tree was coming up ahead. It was as if she saw it coming in slow motion. The bike was headed straight for it. Grabbing Ryuu's shoulders, Mikoto muttered a protect spell. Immediately, the boy was surrounded by a bright yellow aura. Then, next she somehow managed to turn her body, still holding on to Ryuu and throw him from the bike.

She watched him roll across the grass, wet with dew. There was a crash, an unmistakable explosion of some sort, and Mikoto felt her head collide with the tree, going at least forty miles per hour. The world blurred into a black haze and in seconds her eyes closed.

Before Ryuu knew what was going on, he was thrown from his bike. He couldn't breathe, the very wind had been knocked out of him. But as soon as he remembered just what happened, he jumped up from the ground and limped around. It was dark outside, but about fifty feet ahead he saw a fire of some sort.

"Mikoto!" he yelled into the darkness. "Where are you!?"

He had no flashlight, and the city lights just up ahead weren't close enough to help him at all. Awkwardly, he limped toward that fire, believing with every fiber of his being that he would find her and everything would be all right.

The fire was getting closer, he was almost there, and as soon as he approached it, he saw something that horrified him.

He had found Mikoto. She was pinned under the motorcycle, which was burning slowly. Her hair was matted with blood, and a small trail of the crimson liquid flowed down from her nose and mouth.

Ryuu panicked, he had no idea what to do. "Mikoto!" he yelled at her. "Mikoto! Are you all right?" She didn't answer him. She didn't even do so much as nod. Eyes brimming with tears, he studied her quickly and gathered that he still saw her chest moving up and down, very laboriously. "You're going to be okay, Mikoto. I'll make sure of it!" he said.

He looked around the site of the accident. How was he going to move burning hot metal? Worriedly, he ran his fingers through his long brown hair. "Okay, here goes nothing," he muttered to himself. Using the tree to steady him, he pressed his foot against the frame of the bike and very slowly was able to roll part of it off of her.

Mikoto groaned and his heart skipped a beat. "Mikoto!" he exclaimed, "Are you okay?"

There was no other response.

As hard as he tried, he couldn't move the bike any more. Panting with exhaustion, he ran and stood behind the Genome's head. "I may not be able to move the bike," he said slowly. He bent down and put his hands under her armpits. "But I can move you!" and with a grunt, he slowly pulled Mikoto out from under the machine. He heard a crack and knew right then that he had broken at least one of her legs.

Straining every possible muscle and joint in his body, he managed to pull her completely out and away from the scene of the accident. It was completely dark, he could barely see her. The only light was provided by the flicker of the nearby fire.

Holding tightly onto Mikoto's head, Ryuu bent down and wept over her. "Please, wake up, Mikoto. Wake up. You can be okay. I won't let you die. Please, Mikoto, wake up. Don't die on me, I'm not ready for this."

A droplet of water flicked him in the back of the head, and confusedly, Ryuu looked skyward. Another droplet hit him in the eye. Slowly, but surely, it was beginning to rain again. Still hugging Mikoto's head, Ryuu wept harder, letting his tears mix with the rain that poured from the heavens.

"Ryuu?" a familiar voice asked. He shook his head, keeping his eyes shut tightly. It had to be his imagination, or his mind playing tricks on him. "Ryuu…" the voice said again. "What's wrong? Don't cry…"

To be continued…

Puck of Cleyra: It's always good to see a new person reading our work. We're glad that you enjoyed the first story and we can only hope that the second lives up to the first's reputation. ((Crosses their fingers.))

Kingpin: Old friend! You're back! Glad that you're enjoying the story, and the action only continues to pick up from here on out! That's a promise! Action and angst! Yes!

Dark Ice Dragon: Kai was inspired by our favorite Japanese rock star, Miyavi, and he's probably one of my (Anna's) favorite original characters, though sadly, he will not be showing his beautiful face very much as he is busy with other…things. Heh.

Megidramon: Always wonderful to know of fellow Queen-lovers. They're wonderful, aren't they?

Oblivion Viruses: We haven't spoken in a while, which is sad because we used to talk all the time! Things are slowly but surely getting better, IM me sometime! Let me know what's going on in your life! (-Anna)

Terryguy (Tereterhomdark2003): You are the one who asked the best question out of all reviewers. And we promise your answer with be answered…next chapter. o Until then, happy guessing!