CHAPTER 9

The house, awash in darkness, showed no signs of life. Making sure that he was alone, Dave exited his car and sped swiftly to the door. Naturally, it was locked. There was no way of opening the large window beside it from the outside, either, so he tiptoed around until he located a smaller one, which he then shoved open with relative ease.

Beyond that window was a bedroom – most likely the girl's. He focused on slowing his breathing and controlling every movement that he made, aiming to be as stealthy as possible; for although it looked like nobody was home, there was always the chance that one or more of his enemies would be waiting around the corner.

However, at this point, how could he hope to stand against them with his magic power stolen? He began to wish that he hadn't let his anger drive him to destroy the Faces. There wasn't anything he could do about it now. He'd have to trust in his fists for this one, if nothing else.

Peering into the hallway, he was met by more empty silence and darkness. I'll take a chance. If she's here, she's here – I can't waste any more time.

His feet took him with increasing speed through the other rooms of the house. Where was everyone? One final check of the basement showed him that the house truly was empty, so he climbed back up the stairs, mind racing. No. She's gone. No. No! I will not lose!

As he turned to go back into the hallway, he knew something was off. A sixth sense told him that someone else was present.

"We finally meet, father."

"Dave" pushed his glasses up and offered a lifeless glare to the silhouette, smothering any hint of surprise. "My dear son. How wonderful it is to meet you here."

Satoshi stepped forward to reveal himself. "Hand her over."

"Me? I don't have her, what are you talking about?"

"Stop lying. You took her!"

"Why, I came here to find her! You mean to tell me you don't have her, either?"

They both were alerted by raucous metallic clanging coming from outside. Dave dashed past Satoshi to the nearest window – the one he entered through – to find that Hatsuharu was taking out his anger on his shiny new vehicle.

"She's not here!" Haru shouted, his boiling echo searing the night for several seconds.

"Hey!" Dave yelled. "Stop ruining my car!"

Having torn away his disguise long ago, the furious Sohma angled his face over his shoulder toward the source of the voice. He took no time to lock his eyes, frigid gun barrels of steel, on the man. A sickly black aura rose in a fog around his figure, agitating the dust beneath his leather boots.

"Here it comes," Kyo, Ayame and Tohru sighed to themselves.

Haru stormed up to the window with blazing speed and brought his face an inch away from Dave's. Beneath the black shadows of the night, his eyes glinted mercilessly. "Do you think I freakin' care, you twisted bastard? Where is Alyssa?"

Dave drew back as the ball of black fire vaulted through the window. Kyo was quick to follow, allowing his inner rage to take over. How could that imposter not have her? How could she have disappeared so quickly – on their watch?

"Leave it to them, my dear," Ayame gently instructed Tohru as they waited outside the window in safety. She nervously took his hand, noticing that he, too, was just as flustered as the rest of them.

When Dave accidentally backed up into Satoshi, he ceased moving. He was surrounded. If they'd buy it, the truth might actually be able to save him, here. Glancing up again, he watched as the two hot-headed ones cracked their knuckles and readied their stances. "I was hoping you'd tell me, boys," he shrugged calmly.

"Don't give me that crap!"

A sudden blow impacted his right cheek and weakened him down to his hands and knees. Now separated from his glasses, the drops of blood that stained the carpet fell in a vague blur.

Satoshi held up a hand to the others, who stood aside with reluctance, and casually knelt down in front of his adopted father. "You thought you were going to win, didn't you?"

With his jaw hanging open limply, Hiwatari lifted his head. His words came out somewhat slurred. "So did you."

"What were you trying to do, coming here? The same thing Krad tried?"

A clipped huff of acknowledgement was his only reply. It took all that the Sohmas had to resist delivering more physical damage.

"I'm sorry to inform you that he was defeated by your own assistant, Mio. And you, my dear father, will be stopped by your own beloved son."

"I'm not surprised that you knew her role," Hiwatari laughed. "You're so intelligent. You've always been so gifted, son. But what makes you think you can stop me? I've got the world on my side. Hell, I even control Lena. My power will rain down on your head if you get in my way."

Before Satoshi could offer a retort, Kyo cut him off. "Now hold on a second, what is that nonsense? You control Lena? What's that all about, huh?"

Ayame leaned in closer to hear.

"She created me with so much power…" Hiwatari wiped his bleeding lips off on his wrist and slowly rose to his feet. Then, he spread his arms in a confident manner. "Don't ask me why. It was her mistake. I've all but overthrown her – for all intents and purposes, I've taken her place!"

Haru readied his fist again. "You're asking for it."

"What? It's true." He leaned his head to either side to loosen up his neck after the blow. "I made you, Hatsuharu, Ayame, Tohru. I am your Lena. I am your creator; you are the created. You answer to me."

The readied fist sprung back to begin its launch through the air. Satoshi and Kyo, even in their anger, knew it was better to let the man speak than to hurt him, and so they impulsively reached out to stop the attack. "Say that again, you mother-"

"Rin."

Haru froze, and not because the others had caught hold of his arm.

"Don't you want a wish, Haru?" teased Hiwatari. "If you hurt me, I can't bring her here for you, can I?"

Lost in a maze of conflicting emotions, he couldn't move. His gaze stretched beyond Hiwatari's face into a very possible realm where Rin was alive, well, happy, free, his.

"No, Haru!" the others yelled in order to jolt him back to reality.

Just like that, I've tamed the black beast.

A few more seconds passed. Haru let his head fall forward and gritted his teeth. "No."

What?

"I wouldn't do that to her. I wouldn't let scum like you control her, you disgusting phony," he snarled."Between leaving her dead and wishing her alive through you, I'd rather let her be. Besides…we're probably going to die soon anyway."

The fog-like aura around him darkened into inky black tendrils as he looked up through his hair. "But don't think for a second that you're not coming with us." Gathering his composure, he withdrew his arm and tried to let his anger subside. It was no use lashing out right now. Lena had to make him suffer for what he'd said.

Nice control, Kyo thought. It's probably true, though, given the note I found earlier. I just can't believe it. We're close to the end. It'll be over soon. Haru's turned out to be the wise one.

That thought creeped into everyone's minds, no matter how firm they were in their will to fight. But for now, they were still alive. Tohru thought she saw Kyo's eyes flit her way for a second then, but it was hard to be sure in the dark.

Kyo swiftly wrapped Hiwatari's arms into a pin behind his back. "Keep talking."

"Foolish kid," came a strained grunt. "I don't have any more information. You can do nothing to me."

"It seems you underestimate us," Satoshi smirked coolly. "You forget that, should the dreaded end come upon us, we will all die together. You are mortal, just as we are. Your pedestal is not glorified as you'd like to think, father. We can and will take you down for what you've done. Though…I don't think we'll kill you. That's not our place."

"What do you mean by that?" Hiwatari asked, miffed, beginning to feel the sting in his shoulders and wrists.

"I'm starting to understand her. Lena." Everyone listened attentively as he continued. "She doesn't act rashly or naively; she acts with pure purpose. She knows what she's doing, even while we may not. Something tells me that she didn't create you for us to kill."

There was something unnerving about his pause.

"She had a better idea."

Kyo felt the man tense up and tried to guess where this was going. Is he talking about Dark? But he took note of the direction Satoshi was looking – directly behind Hiwatari – and it all made sense. He subtly shook his head in same direction so that everyone else could understand, as well. Here was their chance.

"What are you blabbering about, son?"

Satoshi brought two fingers up to the man's chest and lightly jabbed him. With a hauntingly mellifluous tone, he uttered one last word that was drenched in fateful certainty.

"Checkmate."

It all happened in an instant. Hiwatari burst out of Kyo's hold and tried to make a break for the window, shoving Satoshi to the floor in the process, but Haru swiftly caught him by the waist and bound his nearest arm. Hiwatari's free hand gripped the open windowsill as he was pulled in the other direction, so Tohru, desiring to help in some way, took it upon herself to slam the window down as hard as she could. He sharply withdrew his hand in irritation and gave it a shake, allowing Kyo an easy opening to seize his other arm. Facing the window still, he continued to struggle while the others tugged him deeper into the room.

Ayame opened the window again and, with a sardonic grin, waved goodbye. "If you'll excuse us, mister, we have a princess to find."

"No!" Hiwatari shouted, letting his panic show through at last. "What are you doing?"

Satoshi's world was spinning, but he couldn't afford the time to recover and help. "Do it now!" he ordered from the floor. "Throw him in!"

With a big heave, Hatsuharu and Kyo yanked him backwards and jointly tossed him into the painting that hung on the wall.

The fiery sunset swallowed him whole, and he vanished from the room.

The frantic knocking was useless. No one answered.

"Sam? Sam! Open up!"

Jessica went to wriggle the door handle but found it unlocked. She ran through the front room, nearly tripping over a barking Hugo along the way, until she arrived in Sam's bedroom. There she was, lying sideways on the bed, fully dressed, apparently sleeping.

"Sam!" Jessica gave her a rough shake, causing her to stir. "Wake up, wake up! Why are you sleeping?"

"…Wh…what?"

Sam groggily oriented herself and then observed how disheveled Jessica was. "Hey, what's wrong, Jess?"

"Nothing's wrong with me, I'm concerned about you! Did you hear the news?"

"What news?"

Jessica expelled a lungful of air in frustration, grabbed the television remote, and sat back on the bed.

The television sparked on and turned to the local news channel by her command. Live footage of a nearby road intersection was displayed, followed by a short interview with one of the collision victims.

"It was crazy," the interviewed man said. "Those two cars were just flyin', man, like they were right outta Need for Speed or somethin'. And they must'a had some kinda laser gun, 'cuz look at my car, man! He freakin' melted my car!"

The camera cut to a professionally-dressed on-the-scene news reporter. "We have reports that one of the vehicles involved in the dangerous chase belongs to a young woman named Samantha Compton, though officials believe that her car is stolen property. It was discovered off to the side of the road with missing parts and a gaping hole through the windshield. The driver and weapon were not found. It appears that the other vehicle managed to escape. Thankfully, no one was seriously injured during the incident…"

Jessica shut the television off. "I came as fast as I could. The police and television crews will be coming for you soon, I know it." She watched her friend blink in a daze, still trying to wake up. "So why were you sleeping? It's not even midnight yet. And your getup - one margarita too many at the club, am I right?"

Squinting, Sam tried to sort through her memories. "I…I don't know. Maybe. The last thing I remember was…a man…"

Jessica light-heartedly nudged her elbow in Sam's side. "You can't even remember? Ooo, I was right. You should take me with you next time."

"No, that's not it…" Sam rested her forehead in her palm, thinking. Then she lit up. "I was on a date."

"A date? With whom?"

"With that guy, Jess – the guy you dared me to share my number with on the road. Dave."

She gawked incredulously. "That super handsome guy? He actually called you up?"

"Yes, yes he did," Sam stated with a smidge of pride.

"You don't think he's the one who stole your car, do you?"

"No! Not at all!"

"Are you sure? Looks to me like he could've bought you one too many on purpose, dumped you here and took off with one of his buddies."

Sam let herself fall back on the bed and stared at the ceiling, trying to remember more. She couldn't remember anything she did earlier that day. Somehow, she could remember the drive to the restaurant as clear as day. She recalled a joke here, a fact there, Dave's charming, contagious laugh. Dinner was delicious, but foggy. The rest seemed to be cut out from her memory completely, because she still couldn't remember how she got home. It didn't matter, though. "No, Jess! Put the stupid car chase out of your mind for a minute and listen to me. I don't think I've ever met a man so amazing – you've gotta believe me."

The whirr of a multitude of vehicles and the crackle of tires on asphalt interrupted them. Jessica peeked through the curtains, assaulted by the light show of white and red and blue. "Get up. They're here. I'll help you out."

The two women straightened themselves out and prepared for the inevitable knocking.

"Police Chief Derrick Landry," an older, uniformed man announced as Jessica opened the door. Although the salt-and-pepper hair and crow's feet signaled that he was aging, his voice was strong and steady. He gestured toward another uniformed man at his left, whom he introduced as Officer Brenner. "Is Miss Compton present?"

"Yes I am," Sam informed him as she stepped in front of her friend.

"We'd like to come in and ask you a few questions regarding a road incident that happened approximately half an hour ago," Landry asked politely.

"By all means." Sam stepped aside and invited them in; the second, younger officer followed behind the chief and shut the door.

"Are you aware of what has happened to your car, miss?" Landry asked while Brenner removed a notepad and pen from his chest pocket.

Sam looked at Jessica and back, laughing nervously. "I just saw it on the news. I had no idea."

Brenner readied his pen. "Do you have any idea who may have stolen your car? Anyone holding a grudge against you, anyone you think might be involved in shady activities, anyone who may have had recent access to your car keys…?"

She told the officers that she honestly didn't know anyone personally who would do such a thing; that she knew nothing about the unusual weapon; and that she had spent the day on a first date, if there was any value to be found there.

"This man you spent the evening with," Landry began, "do you have his contact information?"

Sam thought for a minute. His cell showed up as a private number on her caller ID, so she'd written his phone number down on a napkin and stuffed it in her purse. "Yes, I do."

"Have you been in contact with him at all since the incident?"

"No, I haven't."

"We recommend that you do, miss," suggested Brenner with an assuring grin. "I understand you probably don't want to believe he had anything to do with this, but please cooperate with us. It could help the investigation greatly – you never know."

After reaching into a pocket, the chief brought forth a little white card. "Here's my cell. You look tired, Miss Compton – we won't keep you. I'll shoo the camera crews away tonight. Get some rest and call me if you learn anything. We're going to go follow up some other leads in the meantime." He nodded his head and spun around to leave.

"Good night," Brenner said on his way out.

After the cops left, Jessica grabbed Sam by the shoulders. "Go call Dave," she ordered. "You might not think so, but I think there's something up with that guy. Call it a best-friend's intuition."

Sam grabbed her cell phone and Dave's number, still in a daze. She couldn't believe she was doing this. She was sure he was innocent. Would her questions insult him and push him away?

But what if he wasn't innocent?

Spitting out more blood from his battered mouth, Hiwatari slowly pushed himself off of the ground. The grass looked a little funny, even without his glasses. Taking the time to observe his surroundings, he noticed that the rest of the area looked oddly stagnant and lifeless. Regardless, the fact that it was sunset was enough to tell him that he had been sent to another world.

Then it hit him. Indeed, this world had an artistic quality to it, in a style not unlike those beautiful pieces his son always used to make. He never guessed that he himself would one day be trapped inside of one.

"Curse him," he cried in frustration and kicked a nearby tree. "Curse him!"

He fell still. No, he wasn't the only living thing here. The place was overflowing with heartwarming, cheery colors, yet his pulse quickened in response to a deadly chill. He crouched behind the tree he had just struck to hide and gather his thoughts.

That aura…could it be?

He dared to peek around the tree and scan closely for movement. There were more painted trees of vibrant greens, buttered with rich light. There was the quaint, painted house, cozy and inviting. There was the painted lawn, thick, lush wisps, stained with crimson.

Blades of grass dripped with blood. Shackles and chains lay strewn about the area, some broken, some bent, some melted in half, some still locked around pieces of flesh. Demonic horns, claws and fangs stuck up from the ground in a gruesome display of death. With each minute that passed, the heaviness in the air suffocated Hiwatari even more.

The most unsettling part was that he couldn't see the one responsible for it.

He slowly retreated into the safety of the forest, one tree at a time, careful to stay quiet. So here I am, trapped with him in this arena with no weapons to speak of. Panic swept over him. He's gone mad. Satoshi was right. He's going to kill me.

Just then, his cell phone rang. That was it. Krad would hear it; he was a dead man. But since he was a dead man, he might as well answer it.

"Hello?"

"Dave?"

He leaned his head back against the tree, flooded with an unusual emotion. She remembered him. He'd get to hear her voice one more time before he died. The thought came to him that spending time with her was the only worthwhile thing he'd ever done with his short life. The rest – the plotting, thinking, obsessing, secret worrying – cultivated only in the quick end he was about to experience here.

"Dave, are you there?"

"Yes, Sam, it's me."

"Hey." There was a slight pause. "Do you perhaps know what I'm calling about?"

Dave mulled over the possibilities. It could be anything. "Enlighten me."

"My car?"

"Ah, yes, your car."

On the other end of the phone, Sam's jaw dropped with disbelief. It was as if he'd just admitted it. "You're not the one who stole it, are you?"

"Whoa there," Dave said with a hushed voice. His eyes began to roam about as he suddenly saw a plan unfold in front of him. It was tricky, but it was gold. If he played his cards perfectly, he might be able to get away with this. "You mean you don't remember?"

"Remember what?"

"The thief who broke in! He tried to steal something of yours and took off in your car. I chased after him to get it back." It was a half-truth, at least.

"I don't remember that!"

"Well, we did have drinks. I thought you looked fine, but maybe you had a little much?"

"…Oh. That must be it." There was obvious relief in her voice. "Thank you for trying to stop him."

Another pause. "Sam, I need to tell you something."

"What's that?"

"The thief's still on the loose – I believe he's either coming to or already at this address." He quietly whispered the address of the girl's house. "You can stop him. You can get your antique back and put him in jail."

"Ok, I'll tell the police!" She halted. "Where you are now?"

"I'm…in a bit of a pinch. You know, business. I don't think I'll be able to see you any time soon. But I want to let you know that I care about you, Sam, so don't worry –"

A deafening crash. The tree Hiwatari leaned against detonated into a storm of splinters, some of which buried themselves into his back and shoulders.

Agony.

All of a sudden, he could not breathe. Some invisible force constricted every inch of his body, hammering the splinters deep into his skin. Slowly, it lifted him into the air, where he found a flurry white-hot feathers poised around him, their shaft tips jagged like so many broken knives. Brilliant golden locks tumbled around him from behind, and the venom of Krad's whispers dripped into his ear:

"What a welcome surprise...Master."

Hiwatari's trembling hand dropped the cell phone. This could either be the end, or the start of a beautiful beginning. If he had to pick the more likely one, he'd say it was the end.

"Y-…y…you…"

"Oh? What was that?"

If I could just breathe!

Out of his twisted sense of mercy, Krad loosened the grip of his magic. Killing him now wouldn't be any fun. Especially if he couldn't scream.

Hiwatari desperately gasped for air in order to speak his mind as fast as he could.

"Krad!...Krad, listen to me! We have a chance at getting out!"

A pause, and then Hiwatari's feet met the ground again. The feathers lowered, but only slightly. He hunched over with his hands on his knees to catch his breath, each inhale making him keenly aware of the needles in his back.

"Why should I," Krad sneered, "trust you?"

Hardly composed, Hiwatari stood up and turned around to face the demon. Krad was in perfect condition, despite the blood. In fact, he seemed stronger than ever. "After what you tried to do, I shouldn't trust you, either. But here I am, offering you a way of escape."

"Only because you do not wish to die by my hand."

"Not just your hand. I don't want to die in general. I'd venture to say that you don't want to die, either. Kill me now, and you'll never get out. Can we not civilly combine our powers to work this out for our mutual benefit?"

Krad withdrew all of the feathers. "What is your proposed way of escape?"

"You heard the phone call." He gave Krad a hard, searching stare. "Dark has come."

The crimson-soaked demon's countenance turned to stone, and the ground shook subtly.

"He stole the Reflections of Regret from me. You have the other half of it – the ring."

Krad pulled it out of his robes and studied it with new knowledge. The sparkling object he carried was linked to Dark. Perfect.

"A woman I met in the real world is going to inform the police that he stole something of hers," Hiwatari explained. "Attack the ring with your magic to ground him. When the police find him, he won't be able to fight back. They'll take the Reflections of Regret and give it back to the woman. Her subconscious will to see me will pull me out if I wear the ring."

"Just you?"

"If we stay the way we are, yes. But if we bind ourselves together, we will both be free."

Having considered this plan, Krad erupted into sinister laughter. "Well done, Master. And what shall we do when we have escaped? Surely," he sauntered to Hiwatari's side, "we shall be enemies in the same body. What then?"

"No," Hiwatari stated boldly. "It's not impossible for us to coexist. You and I, we think alike. With your power and my reputation, nothing can stop us. We work together. We aim straight for Lena. We live."

Once Hatsuharu and Kyo had simmered down, the group stood around the room, quietly breathing, illuminated only by the lone street light beyond. It had finally happened. Dave was locked away, and they were now safe – but an even bigger problem loomed over their heads. Alyssa was still missing.

All at once, everyone had something to say. It was awkward deciding who would speak first, but consent was eventually given to Kyo.

"Guys…you know that card I tore up at the door?"

They nodded.

"It was a warning letter from Dark, saying he was going to steal her tonight."

Haru wasn't surprised. "I was going to say that Alyssa sounded like she knew he'd arrive as soon as Dave was taken care of."

"And that animal we saw fly away from the bushes," Satoshi added, "was a creature named With, who is Dark's familiar."

"Then we're done for," Kyo sighed, frustrated, expecting his legs to disappear at any moment.

Tohru inched closer to him. "No we're not."

The others inquired as to what she meant.

"Look at us. We're not dead. And remember," she took both of his hands, "relationships take a while to form. Like with us! Those two may like each other, but they won't realize that they're soul-mates or anything right away, silly." Her smile brightened the gloom. "If Dark's the right one for her, he won't use magic on her to rush things like Krad did. We have time, Kyo. True love is a patient process."

"She's right," Ayame realized with cheer. "Love is a beautiful blossom that only opens over time. It's one of Shigure's novels – a complex tale that takes forever to come to fruition!"

"It is not one of his novels!" Kyo hissed. "It's not as sick!"

There came a light chorus of laughter.

"Even so," Satoshi interposed, "we can't just sit around. We need to find her."

The Furuba characters were at a loss of ideas. "How does one find a phantom thief?"

Satoshi entered a deeply focused state of thought for a few moments. Then, he gave swift orders like the police commander he was so accustomed to being. "Kyo, stay posted on the roof. Haru, keep watch inside the house – we don't want you getting lost. Tohru and Ayame, you're coming with me. We'll take the Lexus for a drive to town, watching the skies along the way. Be vigilant. He wouldn't have taken her too far."

They all prepared to do as he instructed. Satoshi strode out of the house with Tohru and Ayame toward Hiwatari's now-dented vehicle, and they all lowered inside. As he had thought, his father was in too much of a hurry to remove the keys. Before setting the car in motion, he explained some more things to the others.

"Tohru, I'm bringing you with me because you resemble a girl from my own world, one whom Dark was deeply connected with. In other words, you're bait. And Ayame, I need your instincts. Open your eyes, your ears, your predatory instincts. Now, I'm familiar with Dark's personality. He'd take a lady only to the most spectacular place possible, and I think I know where that may be. We'll start there and work our way out."

Tohru and Ayame, sitting together in the back seat, nodded with determination. "We'll do our best."

The car purred as Satoshi steered it off into the night. They watched as the sporadic street lights became more frequent and eventually transformed into the sodium daylight of businesses and shopping centers. Ayame pressed his head against the window in order to get a better view of the sky, while Tohru watched out the other side.

Startling them, two pairs of red and blue lights flashed from all of the car's mirrors.

"Oh no!" Tohru gasped with her hands covering her mouth. Satoshi was quiet as he considered what he should do. He hadn't been speeding. What was this all about?

He pulled over and grew tense as two officers walked up to his window. People from the real world were about to see his face. This could cause some problems.

One of the officers tapped on his window, so he took a deep breath and rolled it down. "Yes, officer?"

The officer stopped short. "You, uh…" He stared just a little bit longer. "You look a little young to be driving, don't you, kid? Got your license on you?"

Satoshi responded in a calm manner. "No I do not, but rest assured that I am of age. I legally have twenty-four hours to supply my license."

"What is your name?"

Satoshi answered carefully. "Seth Irata. Dave Irata's son."

The officer nodded – this information matched up with the owner of the plate. I didn't know anything about him having a son, but I see the resemblance, if you ignore the blue hair. Rebel punk. "We've pulled you over because of your license plate. Traffic camera records indicate that this is the missing vehicle involved in a car chase incident that took place about an hour ago. You're not under arrest, but I'm afraid you'll all have to come with me to the police station for questioning."

"I'll take them," the other officer, a shapely young woman, suggested. "Take a break, Ben. It's late. You've been on patrol all day."

He considered this with a sigh. "Alright, the kids are yours. I'll at least report the car."

Thinking a mile a minute, Satoshi, Tohru and Ayame exited the Lexus and followed the woman to her police vehicle. Once inside, they sat in uneasy silence. Eventually, the woman grinned with amusement.

"Lighten up!"

From the passenger seat, Satoshi dared to meet her shimmering, lavender eyes. A few twirls of silver hair fell from beneath her hat, contrasting with her chocolate skin. He was speechless. At last, he laughed at himself for not noticing sooner, and Ayame joined in shortly thereafter.

Tohru, who couldn't see her face, was therefore completely confused.

"Our true maker," Ayame smiled, "Lena."

All three of them swelled up with joy.

"It's late – my time to shine," Lena sang out her melodious voice. "Hiwatari made a public mess, and you're going to fix it. Congratulations. You're on the force again, dear."

Satoshi looked down to find himself spontaneously dressed in a decorated police uniform.

They pulled up to the police station, and she told Satoshi to get out. "Don't worry, I've made sure that the officers here know you. I'm going to take these two home. You'll know what to do as soon as you walk in."

Before he opened the door to the station, he looked back. The car had disappeared. Suddenly alone, he mustered up the faith to burst through the door.

"Commander!"

A young officer with a full head of dark hair came running up to him. "Commander, we just got a call from Samantha Compton, the one who owned the damaged car from the chase," he exhaled. "She thinks she knows who stole her car, as well as one of her valuable antiques, and gave us an address."

I can't believe Lena just thrust me out into the open, but it worked.

The officer listed off the address, allowing Satoshi put all the pieces together regarding the chase. "Officer…what was it...?"

"Brenner, sir," he replied with a sparkling white smile.

"Officer Brenner, he's not at that location. I just came from there."

The man lit up. "Wow, Commander, you're fast. How'd you know the address?"

"I…followed up some other leads. I'm positive that the thief is here in the city somewhere, probably up high on the rooftops."

Landry strode out of his office with an eyebrow raised. "Commander…you seem to know an awful lot about this thief."

"That's because I've run into him in the past, sir. Let's rein in patrol toward the city, just for tonight. I have no doubt he'll be out in the open, probably dressed in black, and a currently missing teenaged girl will be with him. No time to explain – we have to move!"

Both men nodded at Satoshi, setting aside their doubts with a huge amount of trust. "Alrighty, boys!" Landry called out to the handful of officers in the building. "Get ready to go! We're gonna catch ourselves a thief!"

Thank you, Lena. I'm curious to see how this pans out.

I was flying.

The trees fell away beneath my feet, leaving me in the company of faded stars. Stars, and the vigorous pulsing of wings that were black as the air we flew through. I couldn't see very well, but I didn't need to.

I knew it was him.

Each second that passed felt like ages. It was so unexpected that my head started swirling. My mind had been so focused on hunting down Hiwatari, back when I was bound by gravity. When I had hid in the trees, I was part of the shadows, melting into nothing, concerned only with preserving our identities. Fearing for my life. That was when two arms soundlessly stole me into the air, where I didn't have to worry.

"You could've warned me," I finally managed to say.

Keeping his gaze on the sky ahead of him, he responded in his characteristically suave manner. "I told you, didn't I?" His arms held me closer. "That I'd find you in a night like this one."

"But that was a dream."

"You sure?"

His implication got me thinking. "If it wasn't, then what about all the other dreams?"

We were headed toward the city, and the nearing lights began to play off of his features. He tilted his head and answered with a wink: "You'll find out eventually."

I ignored the thought for the time being and simply chose to enjoy his presence. "Where are we going?"

"Up there," he said, pointing out the tallest structure in the town, being the bell-tower of a church. A moment or two later, we approached the structure. Dark's wings rushed forward with immense force to slow us down and usher us into a smooth landing.

When he set me down, I held my breath and faced him – it was the moment I'd been waiting for. The sight that greeted me was surreal. The monstrous black wings that stretched for miles to his sides, glimmering and sleek with power, were unlike anything I'd ever beheld. Impossibly, the gravity-defying purple spikes that constituted his hair swayed in the breeze, yet kept their form. His black attire bared the strong arms that had carried me here, also hinting at a lean build more ideal than humans could ever hope for. And those deep violet eyes, glittering with kindness from nearly a foot above me, drew me in to the point of no return.

Dark placed his hands on my upper arms and backed up a step, studying my features in the same way. "So you're Alyssa…" he smirked, chuckled. "Lena told me about everything that's happened so far. All this trouble, just for me?"

I shrugged. "Well…yeah. And you finally made it."

He let go and stepped to the edge of the platform. "I have to thank you," he said sincerely. "Because of you, I get to live, unfettered by the confines of the other world. I get to fly the skies on real wings, wherever I choose." Offering me his hand, he winked again. "And I get the girl. What could be better?"

At this, I hesitated. But Lena's words…

"Something wrong?"

"The dreams, Dark. Lena proposed a question to me in one of them – she asked me if I'd be willing to sacrifice the others in order to keep you here."

"…And would you?"

I searched his gaze, hoping I'd find forgiveness there. "I don't think I could. I care about them, Dark. But I care about you, too. Why can't you all live? Why does it have to be one or the other?"

He bit his lip and looked out over the city for a moment. Then he opened up his arms. "Come here."

"What?"

His fingers beckoned me, and I obeyed. Tugging me close, he fanned his wings forward and out to the sides as if to present the view, and then bent his head down toward my ear. "It's alright. Here and now, we're all alive. Whatever has to happen, remember this night."

His arms wrapped around my waist, and we stayed that way, simply breathing. He was right. I looked out over the yellowish haze of the town below, ignoring the toy cars and microscopic people, letting every sensation burn into my memory. If nothing else, I had met the legendary phantom thief face-to-face.

A familiar voice floated over Dark's wings from behind. "I'll let you in on a little secret."

Dark quickly released me and folded his wings to reveal the glowing beauty of Lena.

"Girl," she shook her head. "It doesn't have to be that way."

I blinked.

"Remember what I said about making sure you really wanted what you wished for?" she asked. "Well, you finally made up your mind. Handsome as he is" – at this, Dark faked a modest shrug as though he didn't know what she was talking about – "you found out that you couldn't rely on Dark for absolutely everything. This is why I created Hiwatari. He brought you out of your shell by forcing you to unite with each of the others. You've recognized a thing or two about yourself since your first wish. As a result…your wish has changed to a more accurate one."

"…It's changed? To what?"

"'I wish that I could feel alive.'"

She was dead on.

"In accordance with this, they all can live. With a few careful precautions, of course."

Dark flashed a triumphant smile, and I briefly gaped at him until the realization sunk in. Then, I ran over to hug Lena as hard as I could. "Thank you!"

"Just doing my job!" she exclaimed, and suddenly began disintegrating into the necklace I wore.

Once again, Dark and I were alone on the bell tower.

"Looks like you're staying," I beamed, gazing up at him.

"And it's all thanks to you," he spoke softly, and gently brought his hand to the side of my neck, letting his long fingers slide to my chin. Before I knew it, he was leaning closer, and then his lips found mine.

"Feel alive, yet?" came a playful whisper, and then he kissed me again, longer this time.

When again I opened my eyes, I was taken aback by a shock of red hair.

"Uhh…" stuttered Daisuke, blushing a similar shade of red. "This isn't weird."

I turned a bit red myself and let out a shaky laugh. "Nice to meet you, Daisuke."

"Kyuuuuu!"

A tiny white ball of fur on his shoulder flung itself into my hands. Luminous berry-red eyes sparkled at me with the excitement of a puppy, but from a fluffy, rabbit-like body. The creature, With, quickly hopped back onto Daisuke's head and wound around him until he descended into a baggy pants pocket. He tried to shove something out of it. "Kyuu, kyuuu!"

Daisuke took the object, a folded piece of paper. "What's this?"

As he unfolded it, I immediately recognized it as my missing drawing of Dark. Before I could ask for it, the paper itself transformed into Dark, bringing him back to the top of the bell tower. The two were officially separated. Daisuke sighed with relief.

My drawing…was Dark himself?

Dark, however, was extremely annoyed. He reached out to viciously shake Daisuke back and forth. "Stealing my kiss, dangit! Who do you think you are, punk?"

"Hold it, guys," I said, directing their attention to the scene below the tower. Police cars pulled up around the church, one by one, lights blaring.

Dark wasted no time in scooping me up. "See ya, Daisuke! You got this!"

"WHAT? Dark, that's not fair! Come back here!"

Daisuke sighed and paced around the top of the tower, desperately searching for a way of escape. With, still in his pocket, decided to shove another object out of it to make room for himself.

"What's this, now?" he said to himself, withdrawing a bejeweled pocket-watch.

Before he could open it, a paralyzing blade of dark magic cut through him, rendering him stiff as a statue and tipping him over the edge of the tower. Dark, who had been watching him out of the corner of his eye to see how he would fare, immediately stopped in midair when he saw him go over. That was Krad's magic!

He flew back in a panic, planning to set me atop the tower again so that he could swoop down and rescue Daisuke. There was no need, however. He was comforted to find that a familiar blue-haired police commander, miraculously teamed up with a real-life police force, caught him at the bottom.

But then, a blinding light emitted from Daisuke's hand. A single figure manifested itself nearby, spattered with blood.