Kaede sat in Kanae's living room, sitting back in a chair while Kanae and her boyfriend Mori sat on the couch across from her. It'd had been a few hours since her fight with Jeremiah, and a couple of those hours had been spent talking with the police over the matter; despite the fact that she was far more concerned with getting back to her children to make sure they were alright. Fortunately they had been, and they didn't even know that anything had happened until Kaede had called to check up on them. It didn't take long for the media though to jump on the incident, but Kaede didn't really care to listen to the news report considering she already knew the damn story; having had to retell it to both Kanae and the police. Truthfully, she just wanted to lie down, snuggle with her husband, and get some sleep. Speaking of her husband, she was glad he was in a hospital when she told him she had been attacked because she swore he was about to have a heart attack with how he sounded; she couldn't get him to stop asking if she was alright, or if she was injured and how badly. She tried to sound nice when reminding him that it was she who had the miracle super-cure to wounds.

She was glad though to at least know he was concerned, and even happier to know he was already on his way over to Kanae's. When she had last called him, he had said he was getting a ride with Morioka, considering the bus that drove the route he needed was rather beat up and out of commission. She looked at Nyu as her daughter climbed up onto her lap, Kaede smiling softly and putting an arm around the young girl. Nyu happily laid her head against her mother, yawning and closing her eyes.

"Somebody looks tired." Kanae said as she looked at Nyu snuggling up against her mother. "Can't imagine why though with how much running you and Yuki were doing."

Mori looked at Kanae, smiling some. "Can you blame them? With cooking like yours I want to run as well." He chuckled softly when Kanae gave him a playful swat on the chest.

"Nobody says you have to eat it you jerk!" she said, though she too had a smirk.

"Because you'll catch us anyways if we try."

Kanae gave him a little shove before looking at Kaede and Nyu. Neither of the girls had been told yet about the attack on Kaede, as she would have rather they find out when their father was also around. So currently Yuki was sitting on the floor nearby, lost in one of her books. Kaede wished she could get the girls home, but she was not comfortable walking through the streets at the moment and she did not want to risk her children getting caught up in a fight themselves. If they ran into anybody like Jeremiah again, her kids would be defenseless against them. Sure they were receiving training from Kanae, plus they too did have the use of their vectors; however, neither of them knew what it was like to be in a fight where winning and losing meant a lot more than just a bruised ego. She knew that in a fight with a man like him, they would not stand a chance against the assault and she wasn't sure how well she could protect them both while having to defeat the attacker herself. So, while her sister-in-law's apartment was far from a military bunker in regards to its impenetrability, it was a lot safer than roaming the streets in the dark.

Groaning, she put a hand to her head which was still pounding. Kanae had offered some medication to kill the pain, but it only did so much. She was just glad that Nyu was sleepy because it meant she wasn't going to be on the receiving end of a sonic assault, and in her vulnerable state Kaede wasn't sure how well she could weather such a devastating attack.

There was a knocking on the door, followed by it being quickly opened as Kohta stepped into the room. He looked back outside and waved to Morioka who drove off before shutting the door and discarding his shoes. After doing so, he quickly made his way over to where his wife was and knelt down by her. "Kaede-chan! Are you alright?!"

Kaede groaned and slapped a hand over his mouth while rubbing her head. "Not so loud please…I'm ok beyond a splitting headache."

Kohta nodded as she removed her hand, looking at Nyu who looked back at her father with a sleepy smile. Smiling, he accepted the hug she offered, rubbing her back as he did so. "It's good to see you too, Nyu." He then looked over at Yuki who had finally noticed Kohta's arrival. Yuki smiled and hugged her father with a little more force than her groggy twin had managed. Mori had gotten up to grab Kohta a chair so he could sit somewhere rather than just on the floor. He thanked the man before pulling the chair up next to Kaede's and sitting down, pulling Yuki onto his lap as he did so. He then looked at his sister as Mori sat back down next to her. "How are you two? Also thank you for watching the girls Kanae."

She waved off the gratitude, smiling though as she leaned against her boyfriend, "You know it's not a problem Kohta, so stop thanking me every day would you?" As she had grown older, Kanae how dropped some of her younger habits, such as referring to her brother as oniisan and even Kaede as oneesan. Though she occasionally slipped into using them, something that was quite rare of her to do, she had grown out of it with time.

Kohta shook his head, chuckling softly as he did so, "No can do, you should know this by now."

"You have me there, but I'm ok. It wasn't any louder than it usually is when dealing with your girls, no trouble and no injuries either."

"That's good," Kohta then looked at Mori. "How about you Mori, was everything alright?" Kanae had first met Mori at a gym three years ago, where the two of them quickly hit it off. Like his sister, Mori enjoyed martial arts and exercising. Kohta always thought it was amusing when he thought about how the man worked as a bank teller, but he seemed to enjoy it and it paid well enough. Kohta's brotherly instincts had kicked in when he first found out his sister was dating Mori, as Kohta was always hunting for a fault he could find with the man. Of course, it did him little good as he quickly realized there wasn't much he could do about it considering both Kanae and Mori could beat him bad in a fight. He had thought he'd have Kaede to back him up, but considering she liked Mori and thought he was a good match for Kanae; Kohta would have been alone in the battle. So he was forced to relent and accept the fact they were dating, which he didn't regret as he could clearly see how happy the two were together. He was somewhat surprised at how quickly they had decided to move in together, but they were managing so he didn't fret over it very much. Interesting thing about Mori was that, Kohta had no real idea what the man thought about Kaede being a diclonius or about diclonii in general. Mori almost never spoke of the subject, hell Kohta had never even heard Mori bring up Kaede's or the girls' race. Whenever it was brought up in conversation, Mori either tried to change it, or if he couldn't, he'd remove himself from the conversation. Even Kanae didn't know as Mori would still react in such a way to her. Oddly enough though, he never tried to avoid conversing with a diclonius, including Kaede. He would even play or practice with girls without a hint of anger or annoyance; it was something that really bewildered the family.

Mori nodded, rubbing Kanae's back as he looked at Kohta. "Yeah, same stuff, different day."

"That's good," Kohta then turned to Kaede, "Now can you please tell me what happened?" He listened as his wife told the story, Yuki now staring at her mother in awe as she listened. Nyu too had perked up, which Kaede regretted as it took a few moments for her to quiet Nyu down and get her to relax. Finishing the story, Yuki was the first one to speak.

"So you beat him good right?! If not then I'll have to hunt him down and hurt him for attacking you, mom!"

"Yeah!" piped up Nyu, "Nobody messes with okaasan and gets away with it!" She had a "fierce" look on her face, though everybody just thought it was adorable when Nyu tried to look angry or intimidating. Such expressions weren't something she had picked up very well, as the girl was too happy-go-lucky to ever really learn how to express anger.

Kaede shook her head and looked at her daughters. "It's ok you two, I took care of him. So don't worry about it, alright?" Nyu pouted, but nodded anyways. Yuki, unlike her sister, was far more capable at expressing her dislike of something, so Kaede could easily tell her daughter wasn't happy about the idea. Kaede sighed as she looked at her, "Please Yuki, I know you are just as worried as the rest of us, but the man is dead. Alright?" Yuki huffed and crossed her arms, Kaede shaking head her knowing it was the best she was going to get out of her.

"So, who did the guy work for? Any ideas?" Kanae asked as she sat back up off of Mori.

"Do you think it was the people from that facility again?" Kohta added next. Kaede understood the concern in his voice, as the couple was very aware of just how much trouble Director Kakuzawa and his men had been capable of causing. After all, they had been a thorn in the side of Kaede and several of her friends for a long while of their life.

"I…" Kaede paused before looking at her husband. "I don't think so. Unless that director of the facility had others working for him. I honestly think that whole operation of his was shut down once he was taken out of the picture." After Lucy had finished him off and most of his work, Kaede and Kohta had heard nor seen hide or hair of anybody connected to Kakuzawa's team. "I really don't think the man who attacked me was a part of that facility. He wasn't set on capturing me, in fact it seemed like he had every intention of killing me." Though Kaede dreaded the idea that now there were people hunting her once more, which meant not only was she in danger but so was her family, though Nyu's hug made it hard for her to feel too upset. She hugged her daughter back, smiling somewhat as she did so.

"Not exactly better news." said Kohta before sighing, "And here I was hoping things would stay quiet and peaceful."

"Don't get so doom and gloom so quickly Kohta," said his sister as she glared at him. "Yes it stinks that somebody attacked Kaede, but do you have to jump to the conclusion that we've got a bunch of maniacs after her?"

Kohta looked at her, a scowl forming as he did so. "Kanae, you weren't with us during that time. And…" He looked at Yuki in his lap, hesitant to continue the conversation while in the presence of his children. He just wasn't sure if they were mature enough to understand what was happening, and he glanced at his wife as he tried to figure it out.

Kaede looked back at him, then at Nyu who was still hugging her mother before nodding and looking back at Kohta. Yuki though, recognized the look and was quick to pipe up, "Nuh-uh! You're not sending me away!"

At that comment, Nyu pulled back from Kaede and looked at her. "Yeah! What oneesan said!"

Kohta sighed, looking at his daughter in his lap. "This just isn't something your mother and I think you need to hear, at least not till you are older."

"Maybe it is time for them to learn, besides it's not like you two are going to propagate anti-human sentiments in the two." Kanae said. Kohta looked at his sister, before back at his wife.

"Well, what do you think?" he asked

Kaede looked at Nyu's "fierce" expression once more, smiling and ruffling her daughter's hair up before looking at her other daughter: "Alright, you two can stay." Nyu was right back to smiling, Yuki grinning triumphantly.

Kohta looked back at Kanae as he got back on track with the conversation. "Anyways, Kanae, you don't know how persistent or extreme they got. They may have taken breaks, but they certainly didn't stop trying."

"True, but they were always intending to capture me, not kill me." Kaede said, "This man, Jeremiah, he was not looking to take me in alive; it was pretty clear what he was intending." Nyu's smile was gone again, this time replaced with sad expression as she looked up at her mother.

"But, why would someone want to kill you? You are such a nice person!" Kaede looked back at Nyu and rubbed her head.

"Not everyone in the world likes what we are and are capable of, Nyu. There are many people out there in the world that are very afraid of us diclonius."

"Well then why not get them back?!" Yuki piped up while scowling. "If they are going to try and hurt us I say we get them all right back!"

Kohta turned his daughter to look at him, returning her scowl. "Yuki, that doesn't solve the problem. If your mother, you, or your sister just went around hurting everyone who didn't like you just because you are a diclonius then that only makes the problem that much worse."

"How?! If we take out the bad ones, then only the good ones remain and everybody is happy!" Yuki crossed her arms while glaring at her father.

"It just isn't that simple. I wish it were dear, but I'm sorry. It just isn't as easy as that."

"Yuki, Nyu." Kaede spoke, both girls looking at her. "You both will come to understand what we are talking about when you are older, I promise you. It isn't something that either your father or I can easily explain. In time though, you will understand what we mean."

"That's just wonderful..." Yuki said.

"In fact, I want you girls to promise me something right now." Nyu cocked her head to the side, Yuki looking at Kaede as well.

"What is it okaasan?" asked Nyu.

"I want you girls to promise me that you won't ever try to hurt another person unless it's only to protect yourselves, your friends, or family. Don't go seeking fights, because it'll only makes things worse for you two in the end. Can you promise me this, please?"

Yuki was not very happy about the idea. "But mom-"

Kaede cut her off, "I understand that it means you may have to take some lip from those around you, Yuki. Trust me, I've dealt with it enough to know how bad it can get, but the problem will only get worse if you just go around beating up every single one." Kaede couldn't help but think back to her previous life that she had been shown so many years ago. All the blood she had spilt, all the lives she had taken, and all the destruction she had caused. All done out of anger, fear, and sadness. She remembered how lonely and terrible it was, how horrid it was to only desire someone's love and affection, but to never receive it. She looked at Kanae as she thought about it, how she had killed the woman sitting right across form her and how she had so badly hurt the man she loved so much. Looking back at Yuki and Nyu, she knew it was not a path she'd ever want to see her daughters follow and to be lost on.

Nyu was less resistant to the idea than her sister was, but of course she was far friendlier than Yuki. "Ok! I promise! If they try to hurt me then I'll give them a good ol' whoopin'!" In her excitement Nyu had decided to punch her fist into the air, unfortunately she was not exactly paying attention to where the fist was going. Kaede took the girl's "punch" on the bottom of her chin, causing her to jerk her head back, grabbing the area where she was punched and flexing her jaw. Nyu brought her hand back down then gasped looking at Kaede. "I'm sorry okaasan! I didn't mean to, please don't get mad! I wasn't breaking my promise I swear!"

Kanae had her face buried in Mori's shoulder, trying to hide her laugh, something even Kohta and Yuki were having difficulty doing. Kaede flexed her jaw some while patting Nyu's head. "It's fine dear….ow…it's fine! I know you didn't mean it." Nyu sunk down some, partly embarrassed and guilty for doing so.

"Ok…I'm still sorry." She said.

Kaede gave the rest of her family a mild glare before giving Nyu a smile. "I know you are it's ok Nyu."

Kanae sat up, having recovered from her little laughing fit. "So, what's the plan then?" Both parents looked at her, "Obviously you and Kohta are going to have to work, but be more cautious. But what about the girls?"

Kaede looked at Kohta, then at the girls. "I'm not sure…I don't want to take them out of school, but…"

"Look, if need be I can stick with the girls for a while, just as some added protection, you know?" said Kanae. Kohta was about to protest but she stopped him before he could say anything. "No, Kohta; they are my nieces and I am just as concerned for their wellbeing as you two are. So I insist on helping keep watch on them, ok?"

"Fine." Kohta said. "Though, I think it's best we inform the police about this Kaede-chan." He looked at his wife. "Granted, they are probably already getting involved considering the mess the guy made, but it doesn't hurt."

"Yeah, you're probably right." Said Kaede as she let out a sigh and leaned her head back against the chair while closing her eyes.

Kanae watched the diclonius, "Why don't you stay here for tonight. I mean I don't have much room obviously, but we can work something out, ok?"

Kaede opened her eyes, looking at Kanae. Her protest was cut short by Nyu's excited gasp, "Yeah! Sleepover at obasan's!" The smile turned to a pout though, "But okaasan needs to cook breakfast." Kohta again couldn't stop from cracking up, neither could Mori.

"I'm with her on that idea! Let Kaede cook breakfast!" said Mori, who was shoved over while laughing by his girlfriend.

"You all are jerks!" Kanae huffed while standing up and walking out of the living room. "You are sleeping on the floor tonight, Mori!" She said as she left the room.

Mori was grinning. "It was completely worth it."

Later that night, Kaede and Kohta were lying on the floor of the living room, snuggled together as the twins were now asleep on the couch. Kaede was lost in thought as she stared at a nearby wall, her head resting on Kohta. Kohta looked down at her, wrapping an arm around her and rubbing her shoulder. "What's on your mind?" he asked in a hushed tone so as not to disturb their daughters.

"I'm worried is what," Kaede responded back in the same tone. "This is exactly what I was hoping to avoid putting our girls through."

Kohta watched is wife, carefully moving some hair from her face so he could see her better, Kaede looking up at him as he did so. "It'll be ok, Kaede-chan. I know it won't be easy but we made it through things like this before. Not to mention that the world, or at least Japan, is far more aware of such discrimination towards diclonii and there are many out there who will help to protect us. The tension may not be completely gone but things are not the same as they were before when we had to face that director and his goons."

Kaede watched Kohta for a moment before looking back off at the wall. "I know, Kohta, I know that's the case. But that man…" She paused, feeling herself tighten her hold on her husband some, "He was not some random terrorist or mercenary. He took a full hit from my vectors multiple times and stood right back up, he tore a seat from the bus floor with one hand and even ripped a car door off. He wasn't a normal human, Kohta. He belonged to something worse than just a bunch of bigots."

Kohta watched her before turning her head to look at him again. "We'll get through this Kaede-chan, I know we will." He leaned down, kissing her which she happily returned.

"Have you ever visited Japan before, Cromwell?"

"Couple times, mostly vacation."

"And the times it wasn't for vacation?"

"I'm amazed you need to ask such a question, Hooker." Cromwell looked off and around at the buildings around them, hands in his pockets as he walked alongside his partner, Hooker, next to him.

"Touché, was this before the Taskforce?" Hooker asked as he too watched the surroundings.

"Before it became a joint effort, it was here in Japan I learned a man doesn't need all his teeth to talk properly."

"How lovely, now let's go over things one more time so we don't look like idiots when we get to her house. She's hardly trusting of types like us, not to mention we've travelled quite a ways just to see her."

"What? Are we that bad of people?" Cromwell asked, looking at the man walking next to him. Hooker shrugged, not really sure if his partner was being sarcastic or not.

"You might be, now focus. Ok, three days ago a diclonius was assaulted on a public bus. The assaulted is a woman by the name of Kaede…" Hooker stopped talking for a moment. "Um…."

"Forgot her last name didn't you?" Cromwell said looking at the man.

"Ah shut it, like you remembered it either you arse." Cromwell looked back ahead as Hooker decided to continue. "Anyways, she's a mother of two, works in a hospital, and apparently made an enemy of a super human."

"Least it means we are making something of progress, if a man was ripping the roof of a bus just to fuck her up then I'm going to assume we aren't following a random asshat with a stick up his ass about diclonius."

"She was linked with the research facility and its staff, well 'linked' in that they wanted her quite badly."

Cromwell had lit up a cigarette during Hooker's little talk, taking a quick drag of it before taking a turn to speak. "So she's an important case amongst diclonii, ok. You are basically just providing more proof that this isn't just some member of a lynch mob who got really hyped up on something and decided to bash in a random diclonius?"

"Pretty much, just want to make sure you know what is going on."

"Bite me; how far are we from her home? Are we even sure she is going to be home?" Cromwell asked, looking at the man walking next to him.

"We do not know for sure, but might as well stop on by and if nobody is home then we come back later. Though to answer your first question, the house is only a couple more blocks."

"Alright, the next step then is to figure out how the hell we are going to approach her about this." Cromwell looked back ahead, blowing out a puff of smoke.

Hooker considered the question; he had already bounced the idea around his head, but he was simply thinking it over once more. "This is going to sound counterintuitive, but I think coming clean with her is the best option." He expected to get the puzzled look from Cromwell. He simply looked back him and shrugged, "Look, she's just been attacked by a man who ripped the roof of a bus open and ripped the door off a car with his bare hands, she spent a good amount of time having to contend with a pseudo-military faction, and she has a family she is very concerned about protecting right now. If we tip-toe around the matter, Cromwell, then we are only persuading her even further to not work with us." The smoker nodded his head in understanding. "I'm as big a fan of the idea as you are, but if it means we can gain her trust then so be it."

"Well at least you are making sense."

"Aw, how nice of you. I think you might be getting soft on me." He chuckled as Cromwell simply flipped him the bird. "Remember agent, we are from different countries. You need two fingers to be offensive to me." He grinned as Cromwell flicked his cigarette at him. Hooker than looked ahead, noticing the simple and small home they were looking for. "There it is. I'll talk ok? You just keep your trap shut."

"Works for me then, I can't complain when you make the task easier for me." Cromwell responded. The two of them made their way to the front door, which Cromwell roughly rapped his knuckles on. Neither of them cared much if they woke up either of the homeowners, though considering it was around eight thirty in the morning they figured somebody would have been up by now. Sure enough there was as a man with tanned skin opened the door, looking at the two men standing there in front of him.

"Hello, there something I can help you with?" the man asked.

"Hello Kohta," Hooker ignored Cromwell's scoff. "My name is Thomas Hooker; my friend here is Martin Cromwell. We would like to speak with you and your wife, please." Kohta scowled as he looked at the two men, each of them appearing to be in their mid-twenties, both wearing simple clothes and jackets. Hooker seemed the friendliest of the two, as his posture was far more relaxed and not to mention the smile he had. He had short brown hair with hazel eyes. The other man, Cromwell, was clearly still on guard, as his posture was more rigid and tense. He too had his dirty blonde hair cut short, and his blue eyes were watching around the area. Kohta was quick to figure out that these weren't simple travelling salesmen or random visitors.

"Why do you need to see her?" Kohta asked. He and Kaede had been on edge these past couple days. They were both weary of another attack from the group that had sent Jeremiah, and these two men were not projecting an aura of friendship.

Hooker didn't drop the smile. "Please sir, it's really important that we need to speak with you and your wife."

"I'm sorry, but we are busy. I'll have to ask you to leave."

Cromwell turned and looked at Kohta, not donning a smile like his partner had. "Three days ago, your wife, a diclonius by the name of Kaede and mother of twin girls, was attacked by a super human. The man nearly killed her and was capable of incredible feats of strength, had considerable resilience and speed to match." Hooker dropped his smile and sighed, Kohta furrowing his brows.

"I think you need to leave, now." He said fiercely.

Hooker held up his hands, looking at Kohta. "Sir, please. My partner here can be about as subtle as a car-wreck at highway speeds at times. I know this looks bad, but we only know of this incident because we are after the group who sent that man to attack your wife." Kohta was watching Hooker, not sure what to think.

"Kohta, who is it?" Kaede asked as she walked up next to her husband, looking out at the two men. It didn't take long for her to sense the tension that was there between the three of them, so she too was on guard as she looked at them. "What do you two want?"

Kohta watched the two men before looking at Kaede, "They claim they are here in regards to the man who attacked you a couple days ago."

Cromwell didn't wait for Kaede to respond. "Look, can we please come inside and talk? We will explain everything but it'd be nice to do it in a more private setting."

"I'm not letting you inside until you explain yourselves." Kaede responded, eyeing them both carefully. She was glad the girls were off at school right now, as it meant she wouldn't have to be as cautious about them trying to greet the two strangers.

Cromwell looked at Hooker. "You can explain." he said.

Hooker glanced at his partner before looking at Kaede and Kohta. "Alright, I'll start with who we are exactly. I'm not going to tip-toe around this matter, so I'll tell you that my name is Thomas Hooker and I am a member of the United Kingdom's Intelligence Department. MI6 as most people know of it. This," he gestured to Cromwell. "Is Martin Cromwell of the American CIA. We belong to a joint taskforce that is currently investigating the attacks on diclonii that have been occurring worldwide." Kohta and Kaede looked at one another, not sure what to think before they looked back at the two agents.

"Wait, wait, wait. Why the hell are the United States and Britain going around looking into attacks?" Kaede asked. "They are not exactly uncommon."

"The ones we are looking into are." Cromwell said. "You are referring to nut-jobs running around with torch and pitchfork screaming to burn the diclonius. The goons we are after are more organized and quite proficient at making piecemeal of your race." Kaede watched the two men, taking in what they said. It's was true that Jeremiah had not been an ordinary person, she couldn't lie about that.

"Look, we can show you IDs to prove we are who we say we are." Hooker said while reaching into his coat pocket. He wasn't that concerned about having it out, as it hardly said much regarding what he really did. Hell it was really just a military license for him. Cromwell's showed he was a part of the CIA but it too didn't reveal much about their jobs. The couple looked at the two IDs the men had before they put them back away in their coats.

Kohta was still quite weary about it. "How do we know they aren't fake? How do we know you just aren't a part of the group that's apparently hunting my wife?"

"Sir, if we were a part of a secretive group out to kill you, don't you think we'd have chosen far more subtle disguises than being members of our countries respective intelligence agency; not to mention that even if we did choose such a radical disguise we'd have probably chosen a country that wasn't located thousands of miles away like Britain?"

Cromwell for once smiled as he spoke. "Not to mention that during this entire conversation your wife would be dead if we really wanted her to be?" Kohta scowled once more, looking at the man. "A myriad of options could have easily been chosen, but regardless she'd be dead right now if we really wanted her to be. You think I'm just being an ass right now, which I partly am, but consider the idea sir that if we wanted her dead we wouldn't be wasting our time having this long ass conversation." Kohta still wasn't happy, but Kaede sighed in defeat.

"Fine, you win." She looked at her husband who looked back at her, confused and angry at the idea still. "They are right, Kohta. If they wanted me dead, something would have happened by now." The men would have had to have been quite clever in their attack anyways, as during the entire conversation she had kept her vectors deployed around her and Kohta as a shield, which if things turned into a fight she could very easily use them for offensive purposes. She looked back at them. "Come in." She then hooked an arm with Kohta's, mostly to keep him close so she could keep her vectors tight around the two of them. She walked with her husband, who was still unhappy over the whole idea, towards their living room. The agents followed the couple into the living room, which was as simple as the rest of their home was, and sat down across from Kohta and Kaede. "Now, why did you need to come see us?" Kaede asked, keeping close to her husband still.

Hooker sat up, looking at them. "As I said, Cromwell and I are members of a joint taskforce created by the United Kingdom and the United States. For the past couple years, there has been a number of diclonii being murdered or vanishing with no apparent motive. Normally that is something we leave to the respective country's authorities to handle. However, there have been a number within our own countries that have been attacked, but most importantly it's the efficiency and lack of evidence that concerns us." He rested his arms on his knees as he leaned forwards. "These attacks all share the similarity of having military like precision. The victims had no idea what hit them, and little to no evidence is ever left behind. The only evidence we usually find are things such as foot prints or bullet casings, the casings not belonging to any standard civilian weapons nor the usual black market weapons. As I said they have been occurring internationally, small enough in numbers that the majority of people won't notice the trend or pay any heed to it. Britain and the US are not the only countries looking into this, we were sent though considering the US' overall military protection it offers Japan."

"And this is turning into a military matter because of how active and proficient the people you are trying to catch are, right?" Kohta asked.

"Yes, we are still working in conjunction with Japanese authorities, but Cromwell and I are members of a taskforce our countries have formed to deal with the threat. Currently the rest of the members are not here yet, but they are on their way as we speak. If you do agree to work with us, you will meet them so you can at least know who not to try and kill when shit hits the fan." Kaede and Kohta both picked up on what he was getting at, noting the fact that the members were going to show up regardless of their cooperation.

"What do you mean by 'work with you'?" Kaede asked, watching the two agents.

Hooker watched the couple, before rubbing his hands together. "To put it simple you two, and this is why I wasn't bothering to be subtle really, you and your family are going to be bait for these people."

Kaede didn't miss a beat, "Not. Happening. I will not let you use me or my family as pawns in your little hunt!"

Cromwell was just as quick to respond, "Then let me word it differently." Kaede glared at him as he too sat up. "You are going to be live bait whether you want to be or not because these people aren't going to give two shits regarding your willingness to help us and are going to come after you, and to do that I can guarantee your family is going to be used for that purpose. We are going to be watching you anyways and are going to try and get these guys when they come after you." Neither he nor Kaede faltered under the other's glare. "So it's really a matter of you choosing if you want us to actively help you and to work alongside you to make sure it goes as smoothly as possible for you and your kiddies, or if you just want to be a worm dangling on the end of a hook. The taskforce isn't very picky about either option." Kaede had her fists clenched tightly, wanting to punch the bastard across the face.

"You little…!" She couldn't think of a good word to say to describe him.

Hooker cleared his throat, glaring at Cromwell. "Think of an epithet for my friend at a later time, please." He then looked at Kaede and Kohta, who looked just as furious as his wife did. "Please, you two. I know Cromwell horribly worded it, but it comes from our jobs. We kill for a living and it can grind down the sympathetic cog quite a bit. Please listen." The couple turned to face the British man. "We understand your hesitancy, we know how much hell you've had to put up with in your life and that you only want to live a simple, peaceful life with your children. You need to understand that, even though we can seem like callous people, we only want to help you do so." He watched the two, not breaking eye contact with Kaede specifically. "Even if our motives are different we both want the same goal, and that is to stop these bloody bastards and their little genocidal crusade before it makes things worse. We want to see you and your family come out of this alive, and we are going to do everything we can to make it so. So please, you need to trust us when I say you won't be hanging out on an edge the whole time just waiting for them to have some target practice." The tension was still thick, the couple still not sure what to consider.

"How do we know you won't just leave us without help?" Kohta asked. "You claim a lot but you don't offer any guarantee you'll have our backs."

Hooker sighed some, mostly in relief that he had made some form of progress persuading them. "Cromwell and I would shadow you and your family, mostly your kids and husband as we believe you can handle yourself well enough on your own, ma'am." He said as he looked at Kaede. "I know it might seem rather awkward to have two foreign agents trailing you, but you'll never know we are there I promise you. Also, if you agree to this then we will take you to meet the other members of the taskforce when they arrive. It's mostly so you know who to look for and expect when things get bad, but also you can at the least get to know the men who will be providing backup for you."

Cromwell took a chance to pipe up, this time with a lot less hostility. "You can count on these soldiers to hold their own in a tough fight. Delta operatives from the United States and Special Air Service members from Britain, each one hand-picked and well experienced. They've seen plenty of fighting and have had to escort people out of nasty situations before, so they know damn well what they are doing. They won't be following you, just Hooker and I as he said, but they will always be on call and ready to move at a moment's notice."

Kaede had relaxed, still keeping close to her husband with vectors at the ready though. "What about me then? You mentioned you'd mostly be following my family, so what happens if they attack me?"

"You and your husband will both be given tracking devices, each equipped with an emergency beacon. You hit that switch and we'll be all over you faster than flies on shit." Cromwell said "We can give one to your children if you so desire, though one of us will always be following them. It is only you and your husband we'll have to switch between unless we can find another suitable field agent to assist us."

Kaede looked at Kohta, "What do you think?" she asked him.

He sighed, rubbing the back of his head. "I don't like it, but what else can we do?"

Hooker spoke again. "If you need any proof to confirm who we are beyond our IDs, then we can give you the necessary information to obtain that proof."

The couple looked at Hooker before back at each other. "Doesn't make me like it anymore, but it seems like they'll be following us regardless of our choice." Kohta said.

Kaede watched him, before looking down and sighing miserably. She then looked back up at him. "Then let us do it. I hate the idea as well, but it's better if we have them actively seeking to protect us rather than the alternative."

"Yeah, I know." Kohta said before looking at Hooker and Cromwell. "Fine, we'll do it. You best keep your end up."

Hooker smiled, nodding. "We will, we will." He then stood up, offering a hand to them. "Tomorrow we will come to you so that we can have you meet the other members, as well as to give you those beacons. During that time, if you choose not to bring your children along, we will have a group deployed to keep watch over them. I promise you, we will do everything we can to protect you all." Shaking hands with them, Cromwell did the same before the two men turned to leave.

Once outside, Hooker immediately sucker punched Cromwell right in the side, causing the American to swear loudly and buckle slightly. "The fuck you asshole?!" Cromwell exclaimed, looking at Hooker.

"You stupid wanker! This is why I told you to keep your bloody mouth shut!" Hooker then began walking down the street, Cromwell growling before following.

A.N: As always I'd like to thank Lunar for her assistance in proofreading, and I also thank you for reading my story and would greatly appreciate criticism. On another note though, and I feel odd putting this down, I would like to find a beta who is also familiar or speaks British dialect of English. As is probably obvious I live in the US, and I'm not very familiar with British slang, terms, or subtle differences between American and British style of English. I'll try to do my best to get it accurate, but I can only do so much, so if anybody knows of a beta that can assist me there or if any readers are capable of assisting me there I would greatly appreciate it. I'll certainly need the help as Hooker isn't going to be the only person who speaks British dialect (really hope I'm using that word right...). Just PM me if you are interested or know anybody who is, thank you.