Author's Note: That's right, it's time for another update... I hope people are still reading this. ;;

Btw, I downloaded 'Red Hands' by the Dear Hunter, at MehgoMeh's suggestion... GREAT SONG. So sad. -sad face.- Everyone should listen to it. I love the lullaby sound of it.

So yeah, here we go. Time for a fun, angst-filled chapter.

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Five-Leafed Clover

The Sequel to 'Even My Shadow Left Me', an MI fanfiction by Strike To Incinerate.

Chapter o4 - China Aster (Jealousy and After-Thought)

--

"With the worries that I'd give her in they told the worst of me
With my wanting just to hold your neck in my arms and feel me squeeze
No I'm not going to give you what you want so if you please
The sin that shapes your voice carries my ears this new disease."

The Velorium Camper I: Faint of Hearts by Coheed and Cambria.

--

Luise was happy for Alba... to celebrate that they would bring Soiree home tomorrow, she took him out for a drink.

He didn't beg, but when he suggested the Illusion, Luise knew he didn't choose it for the fine wine.

But she didn't tell him no. She wasn't going to hold him against his will... she couldn't. If he felt drawn to Chae Lim, there was no avoiding it. In the back of her mind, Luise could hear the voices saying that he should be with her anyway.

King brought their drinks to the three-quarters full lounge, where she sang. Alba was on the edge of his seat, as much as he tried not to be. He tried to keep his eyes on Luise, but she knew that voice that sang so beautiful was not Chae Lim's.

It was Rekha's siren call, seeking Judiem.

Perhaps she should have told him no.

But at the end of the act, Alba merely clapped politely, and it was Luise who suggested that they go congratulate Chae Lim for her new success.

And at first, Alba seemed a little apprehensive, but then he nodded, taking her arm gently.

Luise saw, too, how Chae Lim tried to force her lips to smile, and barely succeeded. She saw the pain in the girl's gray eyes, and her sudden abhorrence of her... but she couldn't apologize. She couldn't saw she was sorry, although part of her deeply was.

"That was great," Alba said to her softly.

Chae nodded, and swallowed hard, hoping no one would notice.

But Alba did, and Luise tried not to. Alba's gloved hand stiffened as he fought the urge to touch the girl's shoulder comfortingly; it was instinctive. He had sworn he wouldn't see her cry...

"Thank you..." Chae finally said, brushing her hair out of her eyes.

King and Rock, Chae's newest confidantes, saw the tense situation, and Rock was kind enough to step in. Alba was polite enough to step back, but he swallowed the jealousy that rose in his throat like bile. It was bitter, it made his fists clench, and it made him want to wretch.

He couldn't fight loving her, but he was going to try.

"It vas a vonderful perfomance--" Luise began tentatively.

Chae's voice was sharp and cold as she took Rock's arm, toying with a single, long stemmed white rose. "Thank you."

For taking him away. For making my decisions for me. For being the selfish, horrible person we all knew you where.

The thoughts were loud, screaming, stifling, and Luise felt the urge to flee.

"Good night," Alba said simply, leading her away, his eyes staying on the rose just a little too long.

She never loved roses, she never loved things that were so cliche, she doesn't like blonds--

It was funny how easy it was to recall things when his chest was tight and he wanted to punch a wall and cry.

Chae watched him-- them-- leave... themthemthem. It made her feel hollow inside, as if someone had opened her up and taken something out, then put her back together missing a piece.

"Come on," she half-dragged Rock towards the bar.

The rose fell to the floor.

--

It had taken all day, but Ninon had found a five-leafed clover.

She'd searched a vast field... the chances were one in one hundred thousand of finding it... but for this, she would have searched all of Ireland.

Such is the siren, leading men to their doom... she thought. But if Chae Lim was a siren of lore, than Ninon would fancy herself Medea, the greatest of sorceresses, willing to do anything to keep her Jason from leaving...

Yes, it was quite the apt analogy.

Perhaps Chae Lim should have stuck to seducing pitiful, worthless sailors...

It fit so well, she thought, with malicious glee, her nihilistic heart overflowing with hate.

But little Ninon was still too young to know the difference between obsession and love, and the prices people paid for confusing the two.

--

"So..."

It began awkwardly, to say the least.

He was a time-travelling ninja business-man. She was a simple college student - martial artist. They didn't know each other at all.

Her mother was setting her up, but she was too numb to care. Maybe she should have listened to her mother in the first place. Her mother had been right, just as she always was; Iori had used her for the only thing she was apparently good for, and thrown her away, like a rag doll.

Mother knows best.

He could see it in her eyes, that she was bored out of her mind. She was a good-looking girl, petite and pretty, but he knew she wouldn't smile no matter what he did.

"You're a playboy, aren't you?" she asked him bluntly.

He chuckled a little, feeling nervous suddenly; but at least she was talking.

"I guess you could say that," he agreed.

"I knew it." Her voice was convicted, and he wondered if that offended her. "My mother thinks she knows my type."

So, someone had given her the run-around, he realized. Probably very recently. "If it helps--"

"It won't."

She was a very blunt girl, not the kind, carefree person that Shizuka Todoh had described to him. This was probably why she'd begged him to take her daughter out. "I don't think you're ready to date me."

"It took you this long to figure that out?" Narcissistic pig. Jerk. Womanizer. I wouldn't touch you with a ten foot pole now--

He had red hair and brown eyes, but he wasn't Iori.

And maybe that was the problem.

Kasumi stood up, grabbed her jacket, and walked out of the restaurant.

Kotaro Fuuma brushed his wild red hair out of his eyes, and winked at the waitress. "Check, please."

--

Rock Howard was a light-weight. He'd never expected to meet anyone who could hold their liquor worse than he could.

But he had never before thought of getting drunk with Chae Lim.

At first, after three screwdrivers, he felt bad, seeing the glazed-over look in her eyes, tears shining at the corners from sorrow and the bitterness of vodka.

But after two more, he realized that it was not pity he felt for Chae Lim. He was angry at Alba for abandoning such a wonderful girl, and he knew that he needed to pick up the pieces and make life okay for her. He could do that, couldn't he?

She seemed to read his mind. "Let's go get a cab..." she slurred softly.

King gave them both stern looks as she dried off a glass... but she would not be the one to interfere in the affairs of youth. She knew better than to try to point someone in the right direction; each person had to be their own moral compass.

And maybe waking up with a hangover would actually help them.

But, no matter which way it turned out, King had faith that it would be okay. Rock was a very nice kid, and he had never taken such an interest in anyone before... if Alba Meira wouldn't have Chae Lim, Rock wouldn't be a bad second choice.

--

"I think it iz time for you to go home," Luise said, as she took off her jacket and hung it on the hook.

Alba blinked for a moment, and then said, "That obvious, huh?"

She nodded, but did not appreciate the light humor. "Zis... vill never vork. You don't vant to be vith me... and zat is fine. But don't force yourself to pretend zat you don't vant her. It's killing ze both of you..."

"Luise..."

"It's killing me, too. I feel so guilty... don't you see ze vay she looks at you?" Luise said.

"Of course I see it!" Alba's voice was louder than he'd meant it to be. "It hurts, and I don't know why!"

"It hurts because you love her... neither of us can change zat," Luise told him, resting a hand on his shoulder.

"I don't want to."

"You only vant to know vy..."

He nodded. "But it isn't fair. Does no one see my side of this?" he asked. "I can't remember... anything. Everyone just feels bad for her. Everyone thinks that I'm the bad guy!"

But even as he said that, he was hating himself, too.

"Just go home. Soiree vill be zere tomorrow... At ze very least, you know zat he vill be impartial. You never tried talking to her, did you?" Luise asked. He shook his head. "Try it. She might understand."

"She won't... I know she won't," he said weakly. "And I couldn't sit there and tell her that I don't love her anymore."

She laughed softly. "But zat isn't ze problem, is it? Telling her zat vould be a lie," she reminded him. "If you ask her for space, I'm sure zat she vould gladly give it to you. You saw the vay she looked at you. If you asked her for any'ting, she vould do it."

Alba nodded. "I'll be going home, then," he decided, swallowing the lump in his throat.

--

They had stumbled from the cab to the doorstep, and then up the stairs, with forced laughter and heat on their cheeks as they'd held hands.

She unlocked the door, and it had opened a little too fast for her numbed reflexes. That was a real laugh as she'd lost her balance and he'd grabbed her, almost losing his too.

They fell onto the couch, and Rock's first hazy thought was that she was nice and warm and they couldn't really be that drunk.

"Chae... I--" he began, hiccuping.

She didn't seem to notice, her head resting on his chest.

She had fallen asleep, which sounded like a nice idea... but so had kissing her and telling her that she was better off without Alba, who was too selfish to think about her for one minute, when he was thinking about her every minute of every day.

Rock slid his arms around her, holding her close.

He didn't want to kiss her while she slept.

He wanted her awake to see how much he thought he cared.

But soon, enough, he was passed out, too.

And unexpectedly, the door opened again.

"Chae?"

Rock felt on edge, hearing another man calling her name. Whoever they were, they needed to get off of his Kool-Aid, he wasn't going to let anyone else hurt her...

But it was Alba, and he narrowed his eyes at the red-head.

"What are you doing here?" he asked, half-accusing, trying to sober himself enough to speak clearly.

"Apparently, my name is on the lease," Alba replied. "What are you doing here?" he retorted.

It wasn't until she shifted and made a little yawn that he noticed her sleeping there in the blonds arms... looking at peace.

It was that look that set him off.

"Get the fuck out, Howard! NOW!" he roared.

Chae Lim was jolted awake by the sound, sitting up, accidentally jabbing her elbow into Rock's ribs. "What's... going on?" she said, wiping her eyes sleepily. Her eyes readjusted, and her lips split into a smile as she saw Alba, completely forgetting about Rock in her drunken daze.

She rolled off of the couch, pushing herself to her feet, and stumbling towards him.

But Rock followed her, grabbing her arm to hold her back. "Chae, stop... don't," he said.

"Don't tell her what to do!" Alba hissed. "Let her go!"

"Why? So you can hurt her some more, Meira?!" Rock shouted back at him.

"St-stop it..." Chae said quietly, her throat going hoarse.

"Like you're a lot better! Get her drunk and take advantage of her?" Alba replied. "Learn that technique from Terry, you slimebag?"

"At least I was there to get drunk with her!" Rock said. "Love 'em and leave 'em, huh? Learn that in your stupid gang, did you?"

Chae looked from Alba to Rock, and then pulled her arm away from the blond. She didn't know what she was supposed to do... they were both right... well, no Alba was wrong, Rock hadn't tried to take advantage of her, but... Rock was really wrong, Alba was just suffering from amnesia, he wasn't trying to hurt her...

but it had hurt...

And the alcohal had helped lessen the pain...

But now her head hurt, and she was confused, and she didn't want to pick between them. She couldn't.

Alba, thinking that she was stepping aside and choosing him, grabbed Rock's jacket and attempted to haul him out of the apartment.

But Rock had decided to fight, as drunk as he was. So he threw a punch.

And Alba caught his wrist, swung him around, and kicked him in the stomach... right out the door.

Rock landed on his knees, coughing and sputtering, looking up at Alba... and then past him, at Chae Lim, who's mouth was open and partially covered by her hand.

She rushed past the redhead, and knelt down to help Rock up.

"What are you doing?" Both men asked simultaneous.

When she opened her mouth to respond, but no words came out.

--

Author's Note: Yeah, I'm starting the next chapter right now... please leave a review.