Morg: Heyo! Guess who is back with more!

Ikuto: I don't think they need to guess.

Amu: I'm sure they got the email notification.

Morg: Why do you two suck the fun out of everything?

Ikuto: I know something Amu can-

Amu: If you finish that sentence I'll leave and never come back.

Morg: Harsh.

Ikuto: Can guess. Sheesh. I wasn't going to say anything.

Amu: Right.

Morg: Only sometimes am I glad that I don't own either of you.

~Spark of Life~

Traveling to the headquarters for the council was always exhausting. Ikuto felt it so much more since he hadn't been able to regularly feed for the last several months. He was tired and hungry by the time he was entering the meeting hall, and he was certain his face was telling everyone to back off.

Not that it stopped his sister and her spark from pouncing on him as soon as he was through the door.

"Ikuto!"

"Hey, man!"

Sighing, Ikuto hugged Utau back before releasing her to pull Kukai into a quick hug as well. "Hey, guys."

"You look like shit," Utau said with a grin as Kukai slipped his arm around her waist. "I thought you were feeding again."

Ikuto ran a hand through his hair before discreetly looking around. "It isn't a permanent thing."

Kukai whistled at that. "You found a spark willing to feed you but not willing to bond with you? Dang, man, that's rough."

Nodding, Ikuto sighed again. "Yes, it is. It is also a private matter that I don't want everyone in the building to know about."

Kukai mimed zipping his lips shut but grinned the whole time he was doing it.

Ikuto just rolled his eyes at him. He was happy for his sister to have found Kukai. That didn't mean he wanted to spend all his time with them. They were so in love it was disgusting.

Utau frowned for a moment before linking her arm through her brother's and tugging Kukai along by his hand. "Do you know what this meeting is about?"

Ikuto shook his head as he led his sister into the main meeting room. There were a few other beasts and sparks already there and seated. "I haven't a clue. I'm sure it's just something mundane that could have been an email."

Utau couldn't help but laugh at that. "I'm sure you're right, big brother."

Sharing her smile for only a moment, Ikuto led her to their seats. He let her go as Kukai held her chair before sitting beside her. Ikuto took a second to nod at a few other people in greeting before sitting on his sister's other side.

There were more beasts and sparks in attendance than he'd thought there would be. Usually, the council didn't call so many in for meetings. Some people had to travel quite far. He felt his eyebrows raise slightly in surprise when Rima and Nagihiko entered the hall. The last he heard, they were traveling in Europe.

Utau leaned over to her brother while trying to keep her frown from showing. "I think everyone is here, Ikuto. This has got to be about something important."

Nodding, Ikuto squeezed Utau's hand before releasing it once more. "We'll just have to wait and see what they say. I really don't know what's going on here."

Utau didn't like that. Ikuto usually had information before the rest of them since he was in the running to be the next alpha. The fact that the council was keeping something from him wasn't a good thing. "I don't like this."

There wasn't anything Ikuto could do but sit there beside his sister and wait. So that's what he did. He continued to nod and greet other beasts and their sparks as they came into the room, but otherwise, he sat silently. The council would inform them about the content of the meeting when they were ready. Ikuto knew they couldn't be rushed.

One of the last people to enter the room was Tadase. Ikuto made certain that he didn't show any sign of his animosity for the other beast. He knew that not showing how much Tadase's actions were affecting him would make Tadase angry. He'd planned to play it cool on his way there and he was sticking to that plan.

Tadase moved around the room greeting people loudly. His spark was at his side. Ikuto had to stop Utau from doing anything when Tadase moved past them without acknowledging them. Ikuto would rather not talk to him. The snub was appreciated rather than hurtful.

Utau leaned over so she could hiss into her brother's ear without every beast in the room able to hear what she was saying. It wouldn't do to make everyone aware of her ire. "I want to dig my claws into his throat."

Chuckling, Ikuto took Utau's hand back into his and made her relax her fist. "I know the feeling, but there's no need. I'm fine and I'll be fine."

"I'll be more calm when you've bonded to someone."

Ikuto wanted that as well. Despite knowing it wouldn't happen, he couldn't help but imagine having Amu there with him. Her wit and charm would make any meeting much more bearable. "I know."

The members of the council filtered into the room before anything else could be said. The alpha followed in behind them. Ikuto wasn't surprised to see Kazuomi there. The alpha usually attended these things. He was surprised, however, when the alpha caught his eye and seemed to look him over.

Utau tensed beside him but Ikuto simply squeezed her hand to make sure she stayed calm.

He wasn't sure why the alpha was studying him so carefully, but he knew that he would pass the inspection.

Ikuto was proven right when Kazuomi simply raised an eyebrow and took his seat.

The council launched into the meeting. They updated everyone on some of the rules that were changed slightly to update the wording and make them clearer. One man talked for a while about the upcoming festival to celebrate the bond between a beast and their spark. Another mentioned the need for unbonded beasts to find their spark and complete the bonding ritual. An older man said something about wanting to see the birth rate go up.

Ikuto couldn't help but feel that a lot of what the council said was directed at him. He glanced around to see if anyone else was thinking the same when he caught sight of the smirk Tadase was sending him. Tadase seemed to be paying more attention to Ikuto than he was to the meeting.

It dawned on Ikuto then that Tadase had spoken to the council. He'd said something, whether he'd been pretending to be concerned or not, Tadase had told the council that Ikuto was without a spark. Ikuto wouldn't be surprised to find out that the whole meeting was a sham so that they could call him in to see how close he was to going feral.

The whole thing made him want to growl and storm out, but that would just indicate that he was unstable. So Ikuto squeezed Utau's hand tighter but otherwise didn't react.

He didn't say anything when more points were brought up and the council members looked right at him while talking about bonding. He didn't respond when each member of the council seemed to look him over as if checking to see if he was foaming at the mouth or not. He especially didn't say anything when the meeting was called to an end and they lingered while looking at him for a few minutes before leaving the room.

Utau waited until the room started to fill up with noise of the others talking before she leaned back toward her brother. "What the fuck was that," she hissed at him.

Ikuto shook his head before slowly getting to his feet. He pulled her up with him and tucked her hand into his arm to lead her out of the room. She had Kukai's hand in her other one so that he wouldn't be left behind. "We can't talk about it here. There are too many ears."

She was about to demand that he come back to their house with her then so they could talk in private when she was interrupted.

"Ikuto, I must admit, I was a little surprised to see you here."

Ikuto forced himself to relax as he turned to Tadase. "Why would you be surprised to see me at a meeting that the council called?"

Tadase's smug grin did not move from his lips. "I know you've been having a hard time staying well fed. I simply figured you wouldn't want everyone to see you in such a starving state."

Ikuto was pretty sure that the only reason Utau didn't lunge for him was because both Ikuto and Kukai were holding onto her. All the same, he was grateful that she didn't do anything besides scowl at him. "I'm doing just fine, as you can see."

"Yes, I can see. You must have gotten lucky and found an unknown spark. I have always wondered how you seem to have all the luck."

Keeping himself from reacting again, Ikuto shrugged. "I don't think I'm all that lucky, Tadase. I just work hard and try to do the right thing."

"Yes," Tadase said with a smarmy grin. "I'm sure your little pinkette thinks so, too."

Ikuto paled at that. He made sure to keep his face blank, but he couldn't stop the blood from draining from his cheeks. Tadase knew about Amu. "I'm not sure what you're talking about."

Tadase laughed at that. "I'm sure you do. I wonder, Ikuto, if I'll be able to convince her that it's in her best interest to leave you or if she'll have to be forced."

Ikuto could feel Utau tugging on him, but he couldn't get his brain to move past what Tadase was insinuating. He felt frozen.

Utau knew that her fangs were showing as she moved slightly in front of her brother. "Tadase, we're going to have to cut this lovely chat short. We're late."

Nodding, Tadase stepped to the side. His grin never faded as he swept his arm out in dismissal. "By all means, don't let me keep you."

"I won't."

Kukai had to admit that he was impressed with his beast for not snarling as they left the hall. "On a scale from one to ten, how badly do you want to rip him to shreds right now?"

Utau didn't bother to try and calm herself down as she pulled both her brother and her spark along behind her. "A fifteen. Now, we're going to the house and we're going to have a chat. I'm going to probably break some things. Then Ikuto is going to leave so that I can pin you to as many surfaces as it takes to not want to claw out someone's eyes."

Lifting a brow, Kukai glanced back at the hall to see a few other couples getting ready to leave. "I don't know if giving you more energy right now is a good idea."

"You either feed me or I work out this aggression another way."

"I really don't want to be here for this conversation," Ikuto groaned.

Utau tugged on his arm a bit as they made their way down the street. "You okay?"

"No. He knows about Amu. He's going to go after her."

Utau didn't respond until they were in their house there in the village. It wasn't the one that either of them lived at full time. It was one that they used when they needed to be in town for meetings or any other sort of gatherings. Beasts liked to have their own territories.

Ikuto felt himself relax just because he was somewhere he deemed as safe instinctually. He must have shown some of what he was feeling on his face since his sister was quick to turn to him.

"Ikuto, you've got to do something and you have to do it fast. Knowing Tadase, he made this meeting today happen so that you'd have to be called here. He wanted to let you know he knew about your spark. He wanted to say something to make you slip up. He might know about her but that doesn't mean he can find her."

Sucking in a deep breath, Ikuto sat at their table in the kitchen they entered before running a shaky hand through his hair. "I know. I've been very careful the two times I've met her. He can't know where she is."

Kukai leaned against the counter as he folded his arms over his chest. "That doesn't mean he can't find her. He's warning you that he's going to keep searching until he does find her. You still need to do something."

Nodding, Ikuto slumped back into his chair. "I know I do. Amu has helped me out twice now. She kept me from going feral and was pretty calm about me just falling through her balcony door. She could have kicked me out and left me to go insane and be put down, but she chose to feed me instead. I owe her a lot."

Utau felt an eyebrow lift as she listened to her brother speak. "It sounds like you like her."

"What?"

"The way you talk about her makes me think you like her. How many times have you met her now?"

Ikuto didn't bother to hide his confusion from his sister as he looked up at where she was standing before him. "Twice. And of course, I like her."

"You know what I mean."

"I really don't."

Sighing, Utau pulled out another chair to sit beside her brother. "Ikuto, you talk about her like you'd bond with her tomorrow if she'd say yes. You might have only met her twice, but she's left you with such a good impression that I think you want to keep her forever. Tell me I'm wrong."

He couldn't. Ikuto just stared at his sister for a second before looking away. "You'd like her, Utau."

"I'm sure I would. I'm sure she's a thousand times better than your last spark."

"Yes, she is."

"What's this?" Kukai spoke up from where he stood. "You're admitting that Saaya wasn't that great?"

"She was fine," Ikuto said with a sigh. "She did the job I needed her to do. Just because we didn't really get along doesn't mean that she was a terrible person."

Utau couldn't help the flat look she gave her brother. "From what I heard, she barely took any convincing to fall into Tadase's bed."

Ikuto shrugged at that but didn't refute it. He'd heard the same thing. That and she hadn't been very sorry when she'd told him what she'd done. If anything, she'd gloated about it.

They sat in silence for a few more minutes before Ikuto heaved another sigh. "I need to go. I need to find her and warn her that Tadase knows about her. I have to protect her."

"And how are you going to do that? It isn't like you can be with her all the time."

Ikuto didn't want to admit that Utau had a point. So he just stood up, pressed a kiss to Utau's hair, pulled Kukai into another hug, and left. There wasn't much else he could say seeing as he didn't know what he was going to do.

He tried to use his time returning to the city to think about it. He made sure to take random turns and confuse his scent. He even made the effort of returning to his house out in the country to make it seem like he was returning home before leaving once more.

For all the plans that he tried to make, he couldn't move past what Utau said. There wasn't a way for him to be with her all the time. Not when she lived at home with her parents and sister. Not when she wasn't officially his to protect. There was really only one option and he wasn't sure that Amu was going to like it.

He was surprised to find that she wasn't home when he reached her house. Her parents and her sister were, but Amu was not in the house. He stood out front for a second just to scent the air before he turned and made his way down the street. He hoped that if anyone was still following him that they didn't realize that he'd been in front of her house.

Following his nose, Ikuto ended up at the local mall. He was pleased that Amu was in such a public place, but he also didn't like that it was so big and vulnerable. His instincts were screaming at him to find her as quickly as he could and get her somewhere safe.

Staying on her trail, Ikuto made his way through a few stores without really looking at anything they were selling. He was starting to think he'd made a mistake somewhere or missed her when he entered another store. In the back near a rack of sweaters was Amu.

Ikuto made sure to keep his pace calm and collected as he made his way through the store. He cleared his throat before stepping up beside her. "Hello, Amu."

Amu jumped slightly before looking up at Ikuto. "Hey. I really didn't expect to see you here. Like, really, really didn't expect it."

A small smile tugged at his lips, but Ikuto didn't allow himself to actually grin. He really didn't feel like it. Not with what he had to tell her on his mind. "I needed to speak with you. It's really important. Are you okay with coming with me for a few minutes?"

"What's wrong with talking here?"

Ikuto glanced around the store with a frown. The front wall was all windows and there were too many humans around. "I can't talk to you about what I need to talk to you about in here."

Amu followed his gaze before sighing. "I'll tell you what, you help me find a gift for my mother's birthday and I'll have a chat with you."

Ikuto nodded at that. He was more than okay with being with her while she shopped. "Deal."

Frowning up at him, Amu studied Ikuto's face for a second before lifting her finger to poke his chest. "And I'm not feeding you here. I won't do anything like that in public. Got it?"

Smirking at that, Ikuto wrapped his hand around hers to stop her from poking him again. "I got it. That isn't why I'm here, anyway."

That had Amu pausing. She hadn't seen him for a few weeks. She'd figured he'd either show up to eat again or he didn't because he found someone else. She found that she wasn't exactly sure which one of those she wanted to have happen.

She swallowed once before turning away from the sweaters. "Come on, I don't think I'm going to find anything in here."

Ikuto followed behind Amu as she led him out of the store and down the walkway to the next one. "I had to attend a council meeting today."

Amu hummed to show that she was listening.

"There were a lot of people in attendance. People like you and me."

"Yeah?"

Ikuto waited for his words to sink in. He knew that Amu was smart enough to understand what he was trying to tell her.

"Oh," Amu said as she looked up at him. "Does that mean…?"

"Yes."

"Shit, Ikuto. I'm sorry. That must have been rough."

Shrugging, Ikuto looked away from her to gauge the crowd around them. "It wasn't so bad, but he said something that worried me."

Amu slowly slipped her hand into Ikuto's as they continued on their way. She wasn't sure if it would be comforting for him, but she felt the need to do something. "What happened?"

"He said I was looking better than he'd been expecting and that he was sure it was thanks to the pink-haired spark I was seeing."

Amu swallowed hard as she and Ikuto came to a stop. She ignored the people that moved around them as she stared up into Ikuto's worried eyes. "He knows about me?"

Ikuto wouldn't lie to her. "I think he knows of you, but I could be wrong. He could know everything or he could know nothing. I swear, I did what I always do and made sure it was confusing as possible when I came to find you."

"But you were still able to find me."

"Yes, but that's because I know your scent, Amu. I know what being near you feels like. He could not do the same."

Amu nodded before biting her lip. "He's going to try and find me, isn't he?"

"Yes."

Looking away from Ikuto, Amu stared at the floor for a few minutes before nodding again. "Do I need to be afraid?"

Squeezing the smaller hand in his, Ikuto wanted to swear that she would never be afraid again. That he would keep her safe. "Yes."

"Why?"

The word was said so softly that if he didn't have his enhanced hearing he would have missed it. "Because he said that if you could not be persuaded to leave me then he would force you to."

Blanching at that, Amu squeezed her eyes shut. "Would you leaving me alone help?"

"If I thought it would I wouldn't have come to find you today. But he knows of you and I'm certain he won't stop until he can make sure that you can't help me anymore."

"So my options are to fuck someone else or what?"

"Bond with me."

Amu's eyes snapped open wide as she looked up at Ikuto. "What?"

"If you bond with me then you'll be registered with the council. A registered spark's family is protected. In this case, your family won't know about any of this, but they will be off-limits to other beasts. Tadase could not make a move against you or them."

Blinking a few times, Amu finally broke away to look out into the crowd. It was surreal to watch people going on about their boring lives while hers was being shaken to the core. "How long do I get to decide?"

"For as long as I can keep him from finding you."

"So you don't know."

"No, I don't-" Ikuto's words cut off as his nose picked up a familiar scent. He felt his hand tighten around Amu's as his instincts went haywire.

Swallowing hard, Ikuto tried to keep his fangs from dropping. "Amu."

Noticing that something was wrong immediately, Amu stepped closer to Ikuto. "What? What's happening?"

Making sure to keep his eyes on Amu, Ikuto used his other senses to try and pinpoint the beast he knew was nearby. "I'm so sorry, Amu."

"What? Why?"

"He's here."

.

Morg: That seems like a great place to stop.

Ikuto: It really doesn't.

Amu: A great place to stop was before you typed the first word.

Morg: We'll let the readers decide that.