Upon entering Professor Hendrickson's house, Kiriko noticed the eerie silence to it despite the warmth she felt coming from the home, almost like it was used way more often than what an old scientist could muster. Before she could make any more observations, Shinnosuke came up behind her with his luggage and the woman moved to allow the cop room to come in the house.

Harley walked through the house a moment after Shinnosuke. "Here it is, Casa de la Hendrickson! Kitchen is through that room and the stairs to the basement lab are through the door in there. Bedrooms are through here and bathroom is the farthest door on the left side. Unfortunately I only have three bedrooms but I'm going to be sleeping in the lab the entire time; mine, the guest room, and…Gou's room…"

Kiriko let out a small whimper and her eyes locked with the scientist's for a few seconds, the woman noticing the pained look in the man's eyes before going back to a neutral look.

The professor smiled sadly. "Sorry Kiriko… I…can only imagine how much you miss him. Now I feel bad that I was going to suggest you take his room for your stay. I can give it…"

"I want his room Professor. I…thank you. Maybe me being in there will help with not having to be able to see him for so long. I just…I miss him so much. Chase too. I just hope they're safe wherever they are."

Rinna came up behind the woman and patted her shoulder before making her way to the kitchen. "Don't worry, once we get Krim's new device up and running, it'll only be a matter of time before we pick up the Core Driviar in Gou's body and be able to bring him home."

—

Dinner passed mostly in silence since everyone was still jet-lagged. Only Rinna and Harley managed to have a small conversation about the plans for tomorrow once everyone woke up. Kiriko had wanted to talk to the professor privately about her request, but tiredness and her longing to stay in Gou's room after only being in it a few minutes to put her luggage in there won out in the end.

After telling everyone goodnight, Kiriko retired to her room for the duration of their stay. She closed her eyes and braced herself as she opened the door and walked in the room. It was cleaner than she thought it would be, but she surmised Harley had come in and cleaned the room before they got there since he told her he had left it alone when Gou went to Japan.

The room smelled strongly like her brother did and she forced herself not to cry as the scent invaded her nose. She took in everything about his room, his dresser with framed photos of them when they were kids, the walls had photos of the Arizona deserts and sunsets which she was sure Gou had shot with his camera, the closet was full of his regular clothes with a decent selection of nicer outfits that Kiriko couldn't believe he had.

She got dressed in her pajamas and slipped in the huge bed, grateful that while the sheets had obviously been laundered recently, they still had Gou's scent on them. There seemed to be another familiar scent on the sheets, but she couldn't place it. She grabbed her phone on the bedside table and brought up her picture folder. Since she couldn't bring Gou's and Chase's licenses with her, she decided to take pictures of their pictures on her phone.

The scent of her brother combined with staring at his picture was too much for Kiriko and she finally let the tears fall that she had been holding in. Her hands shook and her phone slipped from her fingers and bounced off the bed onto the floor.

"Damn it. Stupid, clumsy…"

Kiriko reached down, wiping her hand on the floor, trying to find her phone. She leaned down, feeling under the bed, and finally her hand hit something solid. She grabbed the object and pulled it from under the bed. It wasn't her phone, but a framed picture, and Kiriko wondered how it had got under the bed from the dresser, unless it had actually been on the bedside table and had fallen off.

She turned the frame around and her hand quickly covered her mouth to choke back her sob. A million questions ran through her head as she stared at the photo within the frame. Tears threatened to fall again and it took Kiriko a few minutes to compose herself before she looked at the picture again.

It was a picture of Gou…and Chase. Both boys were smiling and Chase had his arms around Gou who was sitting at what she realized was Professor Harley's kitchen table. A cake was on the table with the words "Happy 20th Birthday Gou and Chase." Kiriko's eyes widened as she realized how much this picture revealed.

Gou and Chase had been here. Pieces clicked in her head. The unnatural silence of the house, Professor Harley's smiles that didn't quite reach his eyes, the state of Gou's room, the clothes, the smells… They lived here. This was their home. And more important of all, Chase had his own body again.

Part of her was relieved that the two were alright, that they had probably been here the entire time they had been gone. However…how did they get Chase a body, where were they, what would Shinnosuke, Rinna, and she being here mean for them when they left next week? The machine that Rinna and Harley were building…would it even work? Harley was obviously harboring them from Krim, that much was certain. There was no doubt in her mind that he would probably do anything to sabotage the device.

Kiriko knew she needed to talk to Harley privately, the sooner the better, to let him know she was on their side. She was grateful and indebted to the man for keeping her brother and Chase safe for so long, allowing them to be in a place where they were free and happy.

She hugged the picture frame before putting it under her pillow. "Goodnight Gou. Goodnight Chase. Wherever you are, I hope you're safe."

—-

"Professor Harley, can I talk to you?"

Harley heard the screen door and he looked over to see Kiriko step out on the back porch. He gently patted the spot on the porch swing next to him and the woman sat down gently. "So Kiriko, what's on your mind? You seemed distracted at dinner tonight."

"So…you noticed… I'm sorry. It's just… I want to thank you…for everything you've done."

The professor sighed. "Don't worry Kiriko…we'll find them. And then you'll…"

"Professor Harley…I know. I know…about them." Kiriko pulled the framed picture that had been nestled in her jacket and handed the frame to him.

The pain in the man's eyes was apparent as he stared grimly at the picture. "I told them to take everything…make sure to double check to see if they got everything. I…"

"It had fallen under the bed. I wouldn't have even known it was there had I not dropped my phone. Professor…judging from this photo…I knew I was right in my judgement of you. I…was going to have an alternative goal from Krim's when I came here. It was to get your help in finding them secretly…and letting them know I'm an ally to them. I just want them to know that. I miss them so much. It hurts not having them in my life."

"Kiriko…"

"I was so worried about them, about Gou. I had so many horrible scenarios about how he was living wrack my brain. Every time I would think about him having to keep moving, living on the streets cold and hungry, a deep pit of dread would consume me and made me start resenting everything that forced my baby brother into this situation, especially Krim. But that photo…that warmth…that I felt from it. They are very deeply loved and taken care of, aren't they?"

Harley smiled, this time his smile reached his eyes. "I've told them countless times and I'll tell you as well. They're my boys. I'll do everything to protect them, even lying to one of my oldest friends and colleagues to keep them safe. I love and care for them both as if they were my sons."

Kiriko wiped the tears that were forming off her face. "Then I hope this week goes by fast so they can come home. And thank you for giving Gou a good 20th birthday. It hurt not being able to celebrate it with him or even if he even was able to."

"Them Kiriko. If you noticed, the cake says both Gou and Chase. Banno revealed that Chase was first activated the day Gou was born so that would essentially make them brothers. And considering their bond they've formed with each other, especially after Chase got his own body, they've taken being brothers to heart."

"How…exactly did Chase get his own body again? And how is Gou handling being part Roidmude? I didn't get to even talk to him about it before he ran off. I…"

"All in due time Kiriko. We still have a week before you leave. It would be unfair to all three of you if I rushed my explanation of what's transpired since Gou and Chase got here."

Harley looked at the picture in his hands one last time, before handing it to Kiriko. "Here. Take it home with you. We can print off another."

Kiriko gently took the frame from Harley's hands and held it close to her. "Thank you."

—-

Before Kiriko got up to enter the house, the figure that had been standing inside the house close to the back door pushed off the wall and walked quickly back to their room.

Upon entering, Shinnosuke slammed his hand against the closed door. Learning this new information about the situation, his plans needed to be changed.