Heys! Chapter 12! Haha I'm feeling hyper now. Besides that small amount of irritation at a certain someone. So small, it's quite insignificant. So anyway, thanks to all my reviewers, except maybe one…Hee. Anyways, let's get on with the chapter!

Chapter 12- Revelations

Lyn stared at the building before her in shock. How could this be? She had fallen asleep in her room at the En Inn, and yet, she was now standing in front of her house. What had used to be her house.

Lyn was glad that no more tears threatened to fall at the thought of her parents' deaths. But if she had gotten over it, what was she doing standing here in front of her house?

"It's a new ability of mine. I can bring you to a place of my choice in your sleep. And even better. Whatever happens to any living creature here, happens in real life. So I could just kill you here."

Lyn spun around only to find herself face to face with him, but for once, she was able to stare him straight in the eye without feeling any regret or anger.

"So now you're using a coward's technique? You don't dare to fight with me head on, so now you use these kinda despicable methods?" She said mockingly, a smirk on her face.

"I am preoccupied with other matters right now, so I'm using this to remind you of my presence. We wouldn't want you to forget me now, would we?" He replied, a spine chilling grin twisting his face.

"I would never forget you. For what you have done, I will never forgive you." Lyn growled through gritted teeth.

"While you say that in your mind, does your heart agree? You are too soft. Sometimes, you really get on my nerves." He commented, his smirk growing every minute.

"Then why don't you kill me right now?" Lyn challenged, defiance in every word. "Or is our big bad guy unable to bring himself to do such a thing? Considering who I am to you…"

He sighed, shaking his head with a grin. "How long has it been? Four years or so? And you still do not understand how I think. I broke all bonds with you that day I decided to leave. The reason why I do not kill you, is not because I still love you. It is simply because I have other plans in mind."

He grabbed Lyn's right arm in his left hand and gripped her chin with his free hand, pulling her face towards his mouth.

"I will start with your friends. Especially that one who is giving you so much joy. Until then, remember me…" He whispered in her ear, a sadistic smile on his face. He let go of her face, but his grip on her right hand tightened.

As his grip tightened, his nails dug into her skin, opening up fresh cuts. Suddenly, there was a burning sensation on her hand and Lyn's eyes widened when she saw her hand being licked by flames.

"That burn will serve as a reminder until the next time we meet. Until then, make sure you keep fighting to keep yourself afloat in this vicious cycle of life."

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Lyn jerked awake, praying that it had all just been a dream. She shifted on her bed, then she felt a sharp pain on her right arm and she winced, tearing.

So it had not been a dream after all. It had all happened for real. Lyn closed her eyes, and felt comfort at the pitch black which appeared.

She was so tired of all these. She was fighting so hard to keep living, and yet, with a simple sentence, he could put all her effort to waste. She was just so tired, and she felt the fight in her being drained out slowly every time she met him.

But she would keep fighting. Not because he had told her to. She was surprised when she realised that revenge was not the driving force in her life. Since the previous night, Ren had become her pillar of support.

Lyn sighed and climbed out of bed. It didn't look like she would get anymore sleep tonight. She opened the window by her bed and climbed out of it and onto the roof, wincing each time a sharp pain attacked her right arm. She would have to remember to bandage it later.

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Hao sat up and crawled out of his bed when his alarm sounded. He had returned sometime last night with Kaede, so he was still quite tired. He smiled when he thought of how happy Kaede had been when she had gotten to spend her Sunday with her father.

He was glad that he was beginning to want to see her happy, even more than ever. And he was slowly beginning to treat Lyn as a friend. Kaede deserved a person who could love her wholly, and he was glad that he was that person.

Speaking of Lyn. Hao remembered how worried Kaede had been about her, and he remembered how he had forced Ren to tell him what had happened after Lyn had gone to bed. To think that she could still smile at a time like this.

Flashback:

"Lyn…what happened to her? I just can't shake off the feeling that something bad happened." Kaede asked Ren, her voice frantic.

"I…can't tell you. I gave her my word that I wouldn't tell the two of you…" Ren growled in frustration at Kaede's pleas. He had made a promise, and he intended to keep it, but Kaede's constant pleading was seriously beginning to irk him.

"Dammit Ren! Can't you see how frantic Kaede is? Can't you spare a thought for her too?" Hao shouted, grabbing Ren by the collar and slamming his back into the wall.

"Ren…just tell them…the truth will come to light sooner or later anyway. Nobody can keep something so serious away from their friends, especially if it's the truth. The truth can never be hidden for too long." Yoh said, as he pulled Hao away from Ren.

Ren rubbed his neck, which was sore from Hao's handling. Hao had a strong grip, especially when he wanted it so. " Fine. Lyn's parents were murdered by a strange guy…She fought against him, but her attempt to exact revenge was unsuccessful. But she's alright now."

"How can you be so nonchalant about this?!" Hao shouted, slamming his palms down on the table in frustration. "How can anyone be alright so soon after losing their family?!"

"Hao…stop it…Lyn did seem fine just now during dinner. When Lyn gets upset, she loses her appetite, so the fact that she ate such a big meal means that she's alright…" Kaede said, biting her lower lip. "All I needed to know was what happened…"

End flashback.

Hao stood up with a sigh and changed into his school uniform, then walked down to the dining room for breakfast. If Lyn refused to show her sadness, there was nothing he could do. The job of comforting her would go to Ren.

Hao smiled wryly at the thought. The old him would have been jealous of how close Ren and Lyn now were, but ever since he had made that promise to Kaede, he had slowly learnt to let go of his feelings for Lyn, and now he found that he was happy for them.

Yoh was right when he had said that the two of them made a good couple. They just looked so right together, and they were happy in each other's presence.

Just like the growing feelings within him for Kaede.

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Ren entered the kitchen, perspiration dripping down his face and bare back from his morning workout. He grabbed three bottles of milk from the refrigerator, then walked into the dining room.

"Ren…not your milk again. Now I gotta go restock the milk…" Yoh complained from where he was slaving over the stove under Anna's watchful eye, preparing breakfast.

Just as he sat down at the table and opened the first bottle of milk, gulping down its contents. Hao entered the dining room, and after him, Horo Horo.

Ren smirked, then regretted it when he nearly choked on the milk. He finished the rest of the contents in the first bottle, and opened a second.

Just when he was finishing the contents of the second bottle, Lyn walked into the room with Kaede, talking and waving her hands animatedly. Ren spotted a blur of white when she waved her hands, and realised that Lyn's right arm was bandaged.

"What happened?" Ren asked concernedly as Lyn sat down next to him. Lyn stared at him in surprise, then grinned sheepishly when she noticed what Ren was talking about.

"Nothing much. I just felt like wearing it. I think it looks cool! Just like one of those ninjas in Naruto." Lyn joked, laughing.

Ren raised an eyebrow in disbelief, then gulped down the remaining content of the second bottle. Maybe she was lying now because she didn't want the others to find out.

Ren reached for the third bottle of milk, but all his hands caught were air. He stared down in surprise to find the bottle gone, then realised that Lyn had been the one to take the bottle.

"Hope you don't mind…" Lyn said, grinning as she raised the bottle to her lips. Ren shrugged, and Lyn beamed at him before turning to Horo Horo, Hao and Kaede and telling them a joke.

"Well…at least it was the third bottle…" Ren thought wryly.

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"Aizawa Lyn!" Their science teacher shouted at the sleeping Lyn. Ren looked back in surprise, and saw that Lyn was fast asleep on her table. Surprising, considering that she loved science, but it was expected.

On their way to school, when he had asked her why she had dark rings around her eyes, she had told him that she had been unable to sleep due to a nightmare. That had been all she had been willing to tell him.

"Aizawa Lyn! Lift your head from the table this instant!" Their science teacher shouted again. When there was no reaction from Lyn, they science teacher began stalking towards her table, her eyes bulging. Ren could have sworn he saw smoke pouring from her ears.

"Miss…Lyn's just tired…Something happened to her over the weekend and she hasn't been sleeping well. Please let her off for now." Ren stood up and told the teacher politely.

The teacher stared at him for awhile, enraged, then nodded and walked back to the board, resuming her lessons.

"How does he know?" "When did he get so close to Lyn?" "How can this be?! Ren was supposed my boyfriend!" "He told me to get out of his way the other day when I stopped him to say hi, and now he's being so nice to Lyn?" "What did someone like her do to deserve someone as nice as him?"

Murmurs of the girls who were infatuated with Ren filled the class, some of them reaching Ren's ears. "Hey! Lyn's not that bad!" One of the guys, Katsuo suddenly shouted.

"SILENCE!" Their science teacher shouted, her face contorted with rage. "Miss Aizawa is the only one excused. I didn't say anything about the rest of you! If this continues, the whole class is going to land in detention for the rest of this school year!"

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Ren put his pen down on his and glanced at the clock. Their math teacher had sprung a surprise quiz on them. He had wanted to wake Lyn, who had been sleeping like a baby when he had entered the class, but when Ren had explained the situation to him, the teacher had decided to let her off.

Ren had finished the whole test in 15 minutes. Ren sighed and turned around to check on Lyn, and saw that she was still sleeping. He turned back to the front and began sorting out his thoughts.

Was he really her brother? It just fitted in so perfectly, it was too much of a coincidence. They looked alike, and he looked about four years older than her, which meant that he was the same age as her brother.

Ren honestly hoped that it was all just him thinking too much. Anyway, why would Lyn lie to him about something like this? But if it were true…she must be fighting a really intense battle with her own inner demons.

And the nightmare which she had written off so casually. There was probably more behind it then she was telling him. It must have been quite upsetting to have made her lose sleep over it.

"Time's up…" The math teacher announced, and began collecting the papers. Just as he finished collecting the papers, the lunch bell rang.

"Class dismissed…" These words had barely left the mouth of the teacher when the students stood up and ran out of class, some complaining about how difficult the quiz had been.

Ren turned and saw that Lyn was still sleeping, and he decided to get her a drink before waking her up. "I'm gonna get a drink for Lyn and myself…do you want anything?"

Kaede smiled and shook her head, taking a packet of food from her school bag. "No thanks…I'm meeting Hao for lunch today…"

Ren grinned at the look of joy on Kaede's face and nodded. "Right…have fun…" He said, turning around and walking out of the classroom.

When some of the girls saw Ren walking out of the class, they stood up and ran after him. "Ren! Are you going for lunch?" "Can we join you?" Ren clenched his fists, irked by the girls' clingy behaviour.

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"Hey…Lyn…are you ok?" Katsuo asked, shaking Lyn's left hand. Lyn looked up drowsily and muttered something incoherent, then shook her head, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"Oh…Hi Katsuo…where's everybody? Why's the class so empty?" Katsuo stared at her in surprise, then began chuckling. "Gosh…you slept through the lunch bell even? You're so cute…"

Lyn looked at him for awhile, before what he said registered. She nodded slowly and looked around, wondering where Ren and Kaede were.

"So, are you ok? You were sleeping through all the classes. Ren told the teachers that something happened to you over the weekend, so you haven't been feeling well?"

Lyn grinned sheepishly, and began laughing softly. "Nah it was nothing much…I just had a few nightmares…" Katsuo began laughing, and then sat down sidewards on Ren's seat, and struck up a conversation with Lyn. "What happened to your hand anyway?"

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"Kaede…do you feel better now that you cleared things up with your father over the weekend?" Hao asked, putting an arm around Kaede's shoulder as they sat side by side on the bench.

"Yea…thanks Hao…it was you who helped me to understand my father more…" Kaede replied, leaning towards Hao, enjoying the warmth which radiated from his body. It was especially comforting in the cool autumn.

"I'm glad that Lyn finally has someone she can lean on for support. She always used to hide how she felt from me, and never told me when she felt upset about something." Kaede murmured, remembering how cheerful Lyn had been that morning, even though her parents had just died. Lyn had always put on a tough exterior, so it was good that she had someone to talk to now.

"Well, I hope that it's the same for you, k? There's no need to hide your feelings from me. I want to be able to make you smile. I hope to be able to be your pillar of support…" Hao said, smiling at her.

"Every time you want to cry, share your tears with me. Every time you want to scream, share your anger with me. All your emotions. I want to know you. The whole deal. Not just the silent side of you…" Hao said, smiling at Kaede.

Just then, Yoh, Horo Horo and Anna came running towards them. "What the heck? And I was actually looking forward to lunch break…" Hao muttered as he hastily removed his hand from around Kaede's shoulder.

But right now

All I want to do

Is to love you wholeheartedly

And give you a thousand reasons to smile.

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Ren walked back to class carrying two cans of drinks in his hand, and froze when he saw Katsuo chatting Lyn up. He walked towards Lyn and set the two drinks on her table, then glared at Katsuo. "That's my seat…" He growled, folding his arms impatiently.

Katsuo stared at him in surprise for awhile, but when he saw the impatient expression on Ren's face, he stood up and slowly backed away. "Alright…I'm leaving already…relax man…"

Ren rolled his eyes and sat down on his seat, turning his chair around so he sat facing Lyn. "Pick the drink that you want. And did you even bring your lunch? You forgot right?" Lyn grinned and nodded sheepishly, taking one of the cans and opening it.

Ren sighed, and reached into his bag, taking two packets out. He tossed one of the packets at Lyn. "Predictable…" Lyn opened the packet and peered at its contents curiously.

"What is it?" Lyn asked, pulling a face. "Chinese Buns…" Ren muttered, taking a bun from his packet and sinking his teeth into it.

Lyn took a bun out and stared at it suspiciously. "Is it even…edible?" She asked, turning the bun around and examining it. "Of course it's edible!" Ren growled in exasperation. Lyn nodded and took a bite.

"It's…quite good…" She muttered, with her mouth full and took a second bite, followed by another. In a matter of seconds, she had stuffed the whole bun into her mouth. "In fact, it's really good…" She said, her mouth full.

Ren stared at her, an eyebrow raised in shock. "That was what we call a Da Bao…a big bun…and you just stuffed the whole thing in your mouth? You seriously remind me of those two idiots, Yoh and Horo Horo. Why were you skeptical about it anyway? Didn't your mum ever make Chinese buns for you?"

Lyn grinned sheepishly. "Ahaha. She never cooked any Chinese food." She said, taking a second bun from the packet.

Ren stared at Lyn, happily eating her buns for awhile, then made up his mind to ask her about his true identity.

"Is he…the one who murdered your parents…is he your brother?" Ren asked uncertainly, wishing fervently that her answer would not be what he thought it was.

Lyn opened her mouth to answer, but Ren shook his head. "Swallow what's in your mouth first. It's rude to talk with your mouth open…"

Lyn nodded obediently and swallowed her food, then grinned. "Wow…you actually figured that out…observant aren't we? Yes. He is my brother. My brother never died. I lied."

"And your hand?" Ren asked concernedly. Lyn laughed weakly, and when she spoke, her voice sounded shaky. "A new ability of his. He can pull me into a place of his liking in the dream world, and what happens to a living creature there, happens for real."

Wahaha. This started as a random filler chapter, but looks like it ended up less random then expected yea? It's still humorous and all, but there was at least that one important revelation. So, did you guys expect that already?