A/C - For the longest time I couldn't get this chapter to flow the way I had originally written it. Flow is so important to a story so I wanted to get it just right! Sometimes, I do obsess over the word count and tend to rush things when the plot hits the 'less' action-y parts. It's something I'm trying to fix as a writer. But, I FINALLY present you with Chapter 22!

It's been a while since I've done SHOUTOUTS! So be sure to review and I'll give you a shoutout next chapter! Cheers to all the great reviews so far, you are all awesome!

Chapter 22 - Give me All of You

^.^

My heart slammed into my gut. "I- I need to die for this to be stopped."

Saying the words out loud gave them a new sense of realness. I wasn't alright, none of this was alright - none of this was supposed to happen.

"Did you think this wouldn't have a price? That you could live happily ever after when you destroyed the curse?" Sara laughed bitterly, "You're an even bigger airhead than I thought."

"That's enough." Gene snapped at her then stepped towards me. He gently put a hand on my arm he, steering me back from my suddenly dark thoughts. "Mai, are you alright?"

Gene didn't try to tell me it was going to be okay, nor did he try to cover up the devastating truth with words.

I was breathing heavily.

Sara's voice found it's way to me. There was a sense of desperation behind it that I had never heard. "If you leave the anchor in the state it's in now...then that bastard wins."

I was lulled in by the emotion behind her voice. Sara was fourteen when she became the anchor, even younger when she learned of those horrible things her father taught her.

She clenched her hands, fighting whatever emotions were overpowering her. "I can't let him him. I want to watch him suffer - I want to watch him die." Sara hissed.

In the quietness of the moment, a question sprang to my mind. "How come your soul didn't pass on like Hana?"

"Isn't that the question of the century?" Sara answered in an emotionless tone, which was unlike her usual, sassy, quips. She gave us an empty stare, "I've told you everything and since I don't plan on passing on anytime soon, I'll be around."

Sara turned around with her back to us. Indeed, something dark was pressing on her and she seemed so off - it was unlike her.

Soon, Sara disappeared so it was only Gene and I left.

I knew I was running out of time to be here, I could feel the fatigue deep in my bones now. I had spent a lot of time on this side and time wasn't measured the same in this world as it was in the mortal world. You could spend minutes here and end up having spent hours instead.

Gene looked at me with a sad expression on his face. I didn't want to talk about it anymore. Didn't want to be reminded that I -

I needed to die.

"I met your parents tonight," I said by way of distraction. "They really love you and Naru, don't they?"

He nodded. "They do."

"You two are lucky."

"We are." Gene agreed and stepped towards me, his finger lightly tracing my jaw. It was a moment that wasn't rare with Gene - the brother who wasn't afraid of touch. He said in a quiet voice, "We'll find a way to fix this, Mai."

I remained silent, my heartbeat pounding through my skin. I couldn't talk about it, didn't want to think about it.

Gene stilled from beside me, a frown deepening on his face. "Are you still going to tell him?"

I wasn't ready for that question, either. There was too much to process, too much to understand and I couldn't answer. Gene continued carefully, "He'll be devastated if you don't. If one day you were to just disappear...I couldn't imagine what he would do."

He was right. I didn't want to address what, exactly, was happening between Naru and I. Not when things were so unclear and with Naru being a known flight risk… it was safer to assume nothing was going on. At the same time, it was so hard when things between him and I were intense. It was starting to feel like something was pulling us together, connecting us on a deeper level.

And it was scary as all hell.

"I'll figure it out," I said, answering Gene finally. I placed my hand on top of his, looking up at him. "Thank you for finding her. I know it probably wasn't easy...and as for all of this, I need to sleep on it. I just can't...think right now."

"I understand," said Gene.

He dropped his hand and I stepped back, closing my eyes. I felt this world melt under me. Felt it dissolve as my spirit found its way back to my physical body. When I opened my eyes, I was on my knees and alone in the dark room.

Shakily, I rose and turned on the light. Then, I rummaged in my drawer for something to wear other than my fancy jumpsuit.

When I opened my door, I was greeted by more darkness.

The lights in the kitchen had been turned off and I padded down the hall into the living room. Sleeping on the couch was Naru.

I didn't know how long I was in that other realm for but I could smell the scent of his soap and shampoo from his shower. I looked into the kitchen and saw that the cups had been washed and put away.

Slowly, I walked over to Naru's sleeping figure. I was stupidly grateful that he left me alone, not probing my space and forcing me to talk. It was something that Lucien did constantly, he just had to make sure I was okay all the time - had to try and fix everything.

Sometimes, it was fine to not be okay. Some things couldn't be fixed.

I knelt by his head carefully looking at his face. Naru sleeping was almost as unbelievable as Naru living with me. I never thought I would experience this. His skin was so smooth that I wanted to trace my finger over his jaw just to feel it.

Then, my gaze dropped to his lips.

My heart fluttered as I thought about the only time those lips were on mine. The way they felt so soft. I knew Naru's mouth was his main weapon, his source of protection. That night in the cabin I felt his lips on mine and it relayed the desperation he must have felt when we were a moment away from death.

I realized Naru would never be the type of person who hovered. He would always let me deal with whatever I needed to on my own so I could sort it out.

A little more sadly I also realized Naru could never be mine. Whatever was happening between us was an illusion that I was beginning to believe.

The thought hurt me more than I could have imagined.

Naru would never be mine.

Slowly I rose.

In the morning I will tell Naru about the amulet, about the meeting with Gene and Sara.

For now I needed sleep.

^.^

This night was very far from over.

My dreams had been interrupted by a strange sensation. I had felt this presence once before in a memory.

I wasn't quite sure I was ready to see the Legendary Spirit Guide in front of me. His furry fox head startled me, his body was completely covered by robes that looked as if they were made of the darkness around us.

"Kitzune," I watched him approach, his golden eyes bright in the dark.

"Hello, little anchor." He greeted me in a rough voice laced with a mischievous hint. As if he were always smirking. "You've caused quite a commotion."

I realized we were standing at the Iron Gates.

"A-are you here to pass on?" I asked, confused.

He grinned at this, "I couldn't pass on even if I tried. It's a gift as much as it is a curse."

"Are you here to kill me?" I recalled from the conversation I overheard that the leader, Hanataka-Tengu, wanted to kill me to re-balance the cycle of life and death.

Those lips pulled at the corners. "Yes, Hanataka would certainly enjoy that, wouldn't he? However, I'm here on a solo errand."

I tried to settle my pounding heartbeat as Kitzune watched me with stealthy eyes. "I heard you found out about the Xipherian Amulet."

"Yes, I did."

Kitzune continued to watch me. "The others would prefer to not intervene, since it would only cause further problems to such a fragile state of affairs. I, on the other hand, think it would be wise for you to know the exact entity you are up against because I sense that you are different from the last. You intend to fight."

I was going to fight - I wasn't sure how yet but I remember Gene telling me he would find a way. And, if I dare tell Naru, he would certainly make sure to find a way as well. Even if I couldn't save my life, maybe I could save the future of someone else's fate from becoming like mine, Hana's or Sara's.

What Kitzune was offering me, I realized, was a chance at that success.

The spirit guardian noticed my change in attitude towards him - no longer was I seeing him as a threat, but as an ally.

"There is a mirror," he said. "The Lasser Glass they called it. It was old even when we were young. It is said that a young Deity descended to earth using the Lasser Glass and became trapped within the mirror. Living on earth forced the Deity to change, and they had to become something else - had to become different."

The story was taking a terrifying turn.

"Before entering the mirror, they were immortal. Being here, on this realm, forced them to eat life, itself, and remain forever. Here, they have become a Death God." Kitzune said.

"You mean he can consume souls? That sounds...like the anchor." I pointed out.

Kitzune smiled, "precisely." His eyes were shimmering with amusement.

"If the Lasser Glass has a Death God inhabiting... what is the anchor and the Xhiperian Amulet?"

"I wondered that too until I realized the truth about the Xipherian Amulet. How, do you suppose, can an amulet have such power? There has never been such an artifact before." Kitzune said.

I waited and waited and waited, picking apart his words like crumbs of bread. The spirit waited too.

The answer came to me in a shocking jolt. "The Lasser Glass is in the Xipherian Amulet."

He fell silent, toying with his delicately long and sharp claws, tapping them against each other. I resisted the urge to shiver at the thought of what those talons could do to me.

"You're a clever one, aren't you?" Kitzune smiled. "There is no doubt about it, the Lasser Glass is missing a piece that I now believe is within the Xipherian Amulet. Thus, the mirror does not have its full potential."

"That means we're up against an actual God? A Death God." My body tensed. A war with another God. The last time, on a case, we went up against a God it almost cost Naru his life.

A second thing I realized was that there was no benefit to help me.

Kitzune, a Spirit Guardian, did not trouble himself with the lives of mortals on a daily basis. Clearly, there was something very important on the line for him to even bother with this little trip.

"Why help me?" I asked, carefully as his gaze took on a different quality. "What's in it for you?"

Kitzune purred pleasantly. "There is one thing I would like in exchange for my help, of course."

All the red flags were going off in my mind. Surely, Kitzune did not mean my anymore harm than this curse. I was more disposable than he, I knew that much.

I had to proceed very cautiously. He was an ancient spirit, a mischievous spirit no doubt. He could easily trick me into making a ridiculous deal, or if I wasn't careful, I could fall into a carefully crafted loop-hole.

"Within reason," I countered.

He exchanged a glance with me. "There are legends that say all can be seen within the Lasser Glass. I have been on this God-forsaken place for millennia. What better entertainment would provide me with more joy? That is my price - restore and bring me the Lasser Glass. In return, I will continue to help you break this curse. Naturally, the anchor should be returned to its rightful origins at some point."

I paused, weighing his words. Kitzune, an immortal Spirit Guardian wanted the Lasser Glass to satisfy his infinite boredom of living as an immortal spirit. I also realized Kitzune was very careful with his words. Not once did he mention that he was going to save me from my fate.

"Will I still need to die?"

He huffed out a breath, "You humans fear death so much. It's a shame."

It was a foolish thing to ask him that. I already knew my answer, so instead I thought of something else I wanted to, desperately, fix if I couldn't save my life in the end. I knew what the legends had depicted of the great Kitzune spirit, that he could alter realities and memories.

I said, carefully. "I want to add one more thing onto that deal."

Kitzune raised a furry eyebrow, golden eyes shimmering like a flame. "I'm listening."

"If I am to die with this curse, I want you to erase any memories of me from my friends. Promise me that and I will make sure you get the Lasser Glass in is full form."

The fox spirit grinned, and it was a wicked thing. "When this is all said and done, little human, I will erase your memory from each of their minds. It'll be as if you were just a dream, a fragment of reality they never knew existed."

A fragment of reality. I supposed that was better than having them completely forget about me.

He stepped towards me, extending a claw-tipped paw. "Do we have a deal?"

It was too easy - too easy indeed. Everything in my being was warning me to step back but my body moved on its own. I stepped into that outstretched claw, grasping it with my hand and confirming the deal.

"There is one more, itsy, little thing," Kitzune's eyes shone down at me as his grip tightened.

I tried to jerk my hand back, my voice shuttering, "what?"

"It is customary to bear the mark of a deal, you see." He said. Then, Kitzune slowly brought his mouth to my hand and I went completely still. I felt his breath on my wrist as he changed his grip in a sharp movement. "Unless you no longer wish for me to help you, little human."

I went rigid under his touch. "Do it," I said in a hard tone.

Kitzune's laugh sounded breathless - then he brought those teeth, those very sharp teeth, down onto my flesh. He bit into my palm and I yelped out at the pain as a strange magic swirled from around us. It felt familiar, so familiar, as it whipped at my skin and hair. I tried to jerk my hand back but Kitzune tightened his grip, digging deeper into my flesh. A pain like pin-pricks running down my wrist turned into a burning sensation.

Hot, then cold, I shivered as the magic affected me. It seemed to dig deeper than flesh, deeper than blood, as it penetrated through me.

When it was over, I gasped awake in my dark room. It was quiet except for my heavy breathing.

I lifted my left arm towards my face, turning it over - examining it.

There was nothing. Only the stark tattoos from the curse on my forearm remained. Maybe Kitzune didn't mark me as I thought he intended to do.

Slowly, I settled back into my bed as a thought nagged at me.

Nothing was as it seemed anymore.

^.^