Author's Note: Chapter 16 is up, enjoy! Yes, gasp! I put in a song verse!

Disclaimer: I don't own Kyou Kara Maou or any of its characters but the OC and plot are mine… xD silver lining…

Would he walk on water
Would he run through fire
Would he stand before you
Would he will be your anchor when the dark unfolds
Would he always love you the best that he knows?

Would he give his life up
To be all that he can
Is that, is that, is that how you measure a man?

--Measure of a Man, Clay Aiken.

Chapter 16

Ysabel sat on her bed. She had ended up spending the rest of the day with Conrad 'hunting memories'. She had lost count of how many she gained in just today alone. Most of them were about the two of them getting into mischief. Ysabel could hardly belief that she was so… lively when she was young. She had always been the quiet one at the orphanage. You could say that the childhood she didn't remember and the one she did were two total opposites. She smiled when she recalled them.

Looks like you had a busy day, a voice sounded in her head.

Ysabel rolled her eyes and sighed. Shinou, she thought.

Oi oi, what's with the attitude?

Suppressing the urge to roll her eyes again, she replied, never mind. Was there something you wanted?

Ysabel could feel the smirk on his face. Nothing in particular, he voice sounded. His tone grew serious. You remembered a lot of memories today, so why aren't you happy?

Ysabel raised an eyebrow. Why aren't I happy? What are you talking about? Of course I'm happy I remembered.

Oh really. From his tone, it was hard to tell whether or not it was a question. Then his presence disappeared from her mind.

Frustrated by the king's irritating manner, she let her upper body flop on the bed. Starring at the top of her canopy, she ran her conversation with him through her mind. What did he mean she wasn't happy? She was gaining forgotten memories so of course she was happy… right?

Ysabel searched deeper and then she realized what the king had meant. Within the overflowing happiness, a small, tiny fragment of another emotion lay. She bit her lower lip. It was worry. Even though Conrad was smiling every time she had looked over at him, why did she feel that he was… rushing?

Logan closed the door behind him and smiled. Now he stood, without a doubt, that it was Ysabel von Edel inside that room he had just exited.

Honestly, when he had first heard the news of the resurrected aristocrat in Edel, his first instinct was to hurt the person who would insult Her Excellency's memory by impersonating her. But here she was. Just a few from where he stood now.

It was only when he saw her that morning on top of the hill that Logan realized. He realized that his feeling to hurt the impersonator was just the outer shell of his true feelings. Deep down, he secretly hoped, truly and deeply hoped that the rumor was true. But then, could you really blame him? What were the chances that a dead mazoku would come back to life?

Well, whatever the reason or cause that brought her back, he was glad. Logan was drawn out of his thoughts by a familiar presence.

"Report," he said, barely audible.

A shadow jumped down from the windowsill of the nearby high window while another male figure moved out from behind a pillar. Both came forward and saluted, the ever cheeky grin plastered on Hayes' face.

"Ladies first," Hayes grinned.

Nadine didn't even give him the pleasure of seeing her roll her eyes. "It was just as you suspected, Captain," she said, "Rotating shifts of two or three watch Her Excellency's every move."

Logan paused to consider this. He didn't have to think too long to figure it out though. Rotating shifts of two or more? There was only one noble within the walls of the Blood Pledge with so many spare resources: Stoffel von Spitzberg.

Truthfully speaking, the old bastard would have already been assassinated by one noble or another if it wasn't for his right hand man, Raven. The way Stoffel was able to act the way he was today was probably because Raven had conveniently forgotten to report the assassination attempts. The coward probably wouldn't even be able to stand up the next day if he knew someone was daring enough to send someone to kill him.

Yes, Raven's undeniable abilities were wasted on a rat like Stoffel.

Logan nodded, satisfied. "Hayes?"

"Well, sir, apart from the two blokes Nadine darling here reported, of whom, if I may be so bold to add, have absolutely no idea what the word 'spying' means, there's this other person, one of the maids," Hayes said, leaning against the back wall of the narrow corridor.

"One of maids?" Nadine repeated, "I didn't notice any suspicious activity among them."

He waved her off. "You women don't know what to look for. He wasn't acting suspicious, Nadine," Hayes explained calmly, clearly waiting for their reaction.

"He?" Logan and Nadine echoed.

"I know!" Hayes said, very happy that his point got through. "Can you believe it? I mean, if cross-dressing wasn't considered a 'suspicious activity', I don't know what is! I could hardly believe my own eyes: a man insulting woman wear!"

"Hayes…" Nadine began warningly before Logan stopped her.

"Is he a spy from one of the nobles?" he asked.

"Well, like I said, sir," Hayes replied. "He wasn't doing anything suspicious except cross-dressing, so I took it upon myself to follow him to wait for the appropriate moment to teach that scum a lesson or two about respecting women."

"You spent the entire day following a person you had no reason to belief he was a spy?" Nadine growled, her features twitching.

Hayes nodded seriously. "All for the sake of upholding the honor of all women!" he announced, his face shinning with determination. This, of course, was followed by a loud THUMP!

"Oww…" Hayes whined from his position on the ground while rubbing the sore spot on his head.

"So, in other words, he's a very good spy," Logan mused aloud, taking no heed about the animated conversation between his lieutenants.

Hayes gasped. "Sir, with all due respect, don't praise that stain of women when I'm here!"

"Please tell me you got something out of following the maid," Nadine said, her tone showed no signs of pleading or remorse for battering him.

"I upheld the honor of women?" Hayes said.

"Try again," Nadine's voice audibly strained.

"You're right, I didn't," Hayes admitted heartbrokenly. "He went into Lord Gwendal von Voltaire's office before I could."

"Von Voltaire?" Nadine said.

"It must be Josak then," Logan said. He grinned. "Depending on what moves Her Excellency make, you two just might have to work with him."

Color drained from Hayes' face. "Heaven forbid."

Logan indulged himself with a small chuckle. He then turned to Nadine. "What about the other matter I asked you to look into?"

"He plans on leaving tonight," Nadine said.

Logan nodded. It was earlier than he had expected since the date to dispatch the troops was least fifteen days away. Che… Looks like I have some work to do…

"Hayes on guard, Nadine, patrol," Logan said. With that, he turned on his heel and made his way to the stables.

Conrad tightened the strap around the saddle. He was still wearing his blue uniform as opposed to a preferred suit of armor. It couldn't be helped. Additional weapons and armor wouldn't arrive for another few days.

He paused. No, he couldn't stay. Footsteps sounded outside the stable, making Conrad turn towards the doorway. A figure appeared. It was a low ranked soldier that Conrad didn't know. His eyes widened when he stopped Conrad. The shock caused him to drop the leather pouch he was holding in his hand. Its contents emptied out onto the floor. The soldier promptly gathered up a number of coins and jewels. He made sure he didn't drop anything before bowing towards Conrad and disappearing into the night.

Conrad blinked. It must have been a new recruit.

It was awhile later before he felt another presence from behind him. His hand instinctively went to his hilt. "Show yourself," he called out into the darkness.

A familiar figure in vivid auburn stepped out of the shadows. Sensing no (immediate) threat, he let his body relax. "Logan," he greeted.

Logan didn't say anything at first. His eyes wandered to the saddled horse. "Are you sure this is the wisest thing to do?" he asked in an even tone.

Conrad considered his words. "I've been too selfish these past few weeks," he answered, turning his attention back to his ongoing preparations. "I should leave now. Nothing good will come out of it if I stay."

"She wouldn't want you to go," Logan stated.

"I knew that I volunteered for a suicidal mission," Conrad said, "Yet, even knowing that, I got close to her."

Logan nodded in agreement. "That fact alone should justify me hurting you."

Conrad smiled at Logan's half-joking threat. "When it comes for feelings towards Ysabel, there's not much difference between the two of us."

Logan's brow creased. He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose, as if trying to block out a headache. "Are you alright?" Conrad asked.

"I'm just a little dizzy," Logan replied.

Conrad raised an eyebrow. Did someone perfectly healthy just get dizzy suddenly for no apparent reason? A horrific thought occurred to him. "Logan," Conrad said carefully, "when did you start getting headaches?"

"On my way down here," Logan replied, "Why?"

Ysabel heard a knock on the door. It opened and Hayes walked in. "Your Excellency," he bowed. "Just wanted to let you know that I'm on guard duty tonight and if there's anything you need, I'm right outside."

Ysabel smiled and nodded. "Thank you, Hayes."

Hayes bowed low again before turning back to the door. Ysabel was just about to turn away when she saw Hayes assume a battle position, hand on hilt, as he addressed someone outside the door. "You two over there, identify yourselves!"

Dread filled Conrad's entire being. "And did you happen to pass a soldier on your way down?"

"I did," Logan said. "Come to think of it, that's when I started feeling dizzy." Logan's face paled when his mind started to sync with Conrad's. "Conrad, you don't think…"

Ysabel reached for her sword. She had a bad feeling about this. Then, without warning, Hayes fell to his knees, clutching his head in pain. His face contorted in pain as he bit back a cry.

"Hayes!" Ysabel cried out, rushing towards him without thinking.

Ysabel barely made it halfway to Hayes before he looked up. "Run, Your Excellency!" he cried out fiercely.

Conrad's mind raced. What was the color of the jewels that fell out of the pouch? Conrad face paled even more. "The jewels were red!" he said aloud.

"What?" Logan asked.

Hayes struggled to stand but was unsuccessful. The pain was making it hard even for him to keep his eyes open.

Two figures moved into the room. They each held two red, glowing gems. A wave of nausea struck Ysabel. She could feel strength slowly seep away from her body. She backed away towards the far wall while the two figures began their advance.

"Logan!" Conrad called as he went into a mad sprint for a certain noble's chambers. "There's Hoseki in the castle!"

Please let her be okay, he thought desperately. Please let her be okay.

Ysabel didn't have the strength to stand anymore. The two intruders slowly pushed her back against the wall. There was nowhere to go. She was trapped. Fear engulfed her body but she refused to let it show on her face. She was trembling on the insides. Conrad… Where are you?

"You won't get away with this," she shouted at them.

The two figures exchanged looks and laughed. One of them drew a long dagger from his belt and advanced.

Ysabel looked left and right. There was nothing she could do. She was a sitting duck! He brandished his weapon. The dagger reflected in the polished marble floor. The weapon fell, exactly what Ysabel was waiting for.

An invisible sword materialized in her hand, stopping the dagger in its path. Gathering what little strength she had left, she pushed the attacker off.

"Just wait until Conrad…" Ysabel

"Che! That fool?" the other assassin said. "He's already dead."

Time stopped. A different kind of fear and dread filled her. This was one that she was unable to stop from showing on the outsides. The word 'dead' rang in her ears. "No," she whispered, shaking her head. It couldn't be, she thought to herself. It wasn't possible.

"You're wrong!" Ysabel retorted. She was finding it very hard to breathe. "Conrad wouldn't… He couldn't…"

The second assassin waved his hand and two more figures carrying a third walked in. The two were dressed in black robes while the third was…

"Conrad!" Tears were flowing from her eyes now. Over and over she called out his name but the limp and bloodied body didn't show any signs of life. "No, don't do this to me, Conrad!" her voice cracked. Her body went numb. Breathing was secondary now. What she needed now was to see Conrad lift his head. To show her that he was still with her.

"But don't worry," the first assassin said seemingly from far away. "You'll be joining him soon enough."

All of a sudden, it was as if nothing in the world mattered anymore. It was as if life wasn't worth living anymore. She didn't even care when the blade fell.

CLASH! The ringing of steel was followed by a cry of pain. Blood had been shed.

"Wake up, Your Excellency!" a voice sounded in the darkness surrounding her.

She looked up to see a familiar person, Hayes, kneeling in front of her. He held his own sword with both his hands in attempt to parry the enemy's blow. Unfortunately, he didn't have enough strength to hold the attack. Hence, the dagger had pushed back his double-edge sword back, causing the other side of the sword to bite deep into his left shoulder.

"Hayes?" Ysabel said, the scene before her was surprisingly… not surprising. The tears had stopped but her face was still tearstained. Nothing mattered anymore. She felt numb all over. No emotions and no feelings.

"Annoying pest," one the assassins, Ysabel couldn't tell which, said. He lifted a glowing gem and propelled the auburn soldier to the other side of the room.

Hayes' helpless body crashed hard against the stone wall. He was unable to suppress a cry this time. He fell; face down, on the floor, unconscious. The pain from the migraine and shoulder wound cupped with the impact on the wall obviously too much to bear. A pool of blood started to form around his shoulder wound.

"We've taken too long," said one assassin. "Finish it quickly."

The other nodded in agreement. All of a sudden, his body tensed and froze up. "What's the matter?" his companion asked. "Finish it," he prompted.

The fingers around the dagger went limp, causing the blade to fall to the floor with a clatter. The body then fell forward, revealing the hilt of a throwing knife protruding from his back. All attention was drawn to the doorway.

Logan was down on one knee, his left hand held tightly onto the knob of the door for support. His was contorted in pain. From the position of his right arm, it was clear he was the one who had thrown the knife.

"Ysabel!" cried an all too familiar voice. It was a voice that caused an invisible knife to pierce her heart. Conrad, too, appeared at the doorway, sword drawn.

"Conrad?" Ysabel asked. A tingling of emotions ran through her.

When Conrad spotted her, he immediately ran forward with no apparent plan in mind. Only one thing mattered now: Getting Ysabel out of this nightmare safe and sound. And he wasn't about to spend even one precious second planning what to do. He would just do it.

Unfortunately, the assassin was quicker to recover compared to him crossing the large room. He picked the dagger from his fallen comrade, pulled Ysabel up in front of him and placed the dagger and her throat. "Don't take another step!" the assassin demanded, "or I'll slit her right here and now."

Ysabel seemed to be in a trace or daze. She wasn't struggling against his grip or saying anything. What was going on?

Conrad straightened and tossed his sword away. He held both his up to show he wasn't armed. "Against the wall!" the man ordered. Conrad had no choice but to comply. All four gems were still glowing. As Conrad walked, he cast a look sideways. Logan was in even more pain now. The man could barely move let alone fight. No, for this, Logan was going to be more handicap than help.

"Good," the assassin said, satisfied. Then, a smirk crept up onto his face. "Good bye, that is." The two gems he held grew brighten, almost blinding. Flames licked the surface of the crystal.

Then it became clear what he wanted to do. A fireball appeared in the air between them. The fireball grew even more menacing with every passing second. Soon, even Conrad could feel the heat on his skin. He was weaponless, option-less and helpless. What was he going to do? He needed to do something and quick.

The heat was beginning to burn. It was hopeless. There was no visible way out of this. Conrad… had failed. He had failed to protect the ones around him, failed to save the one he loved and… He stole a look at Ysabel. And most importantly, failed to let her know that he…

"Now I can get rid of both of you at the same time. How convenient." Then, the assassin did something Conrad didn't anticipate. He threw the dazed hostage at Conrad's feet and released the ball of energy at the same time.

Every that happened after that did so in between seconds. Conrad moved forward to catch her before she stumbled onto the floor. Then, he turned the both of them around, so that Conrad himself stood in between the only woman he had ever loved and death.

"I love you," Conrad managed to whisper into her ear as he held her in his tight embrace.

Then…

(Val dodges many sharp and blunt objects. 'Alright, alright, I won't leave it at a cliffhanger! I'll continue!')

Then…

Nothing.

No flaming heat scorching his body, no flames licking his skin, no angel of death to receive them. "Are you alright, my lord?" a female voice questioned.

Conrad looked over his shoulder to see a female mazoku in auburn standing in place of the assassin. The later was now facing down on the floor in a similar scenario as his comrade. The fire, like its hojitsu user, was gone. It was at this point that Conrad noticed Logan was missing. He had went for help?

"Is Her Excellency alright?" Nadine asked hesitantly.

Conrad's attention snapped back to Ysabel. He blinked. Tears were silently rolling down her cheeks. She was… crying. "Y… sabel?"

"You idiot," she half shouted with a cracking voice. "I thought you were dead!" She buried her face into his chest and sobbed even harder.

Conrad was faintly aware Nadine moving the fallen Hayes out of the room, making as little noise as possible. He attentively started stroking her midnight hair. "It's… alright now," he said quietly. He pulled her into a tight embrace. "It's alright, I'll never leave you."

At that moment, the moment he held her so close for the first time, Conrad made a decision.

A/n:

PHEW! That had to be one of the hardest chapters I wrote. And really, after I wrote that, I really don't want to write a note from the Author.

I will, however, make a note that I've noticed everything is kind of slow in this story, so… to keep you readers, I'm thinking I have to speed things up a bit before I bore you all to death. Right?

Thank you very, very, very much for reviewing, TwilightVixen and Square-Enix Fan

F.A.Q

1. How many chapters are you planning to write?

A. I have no idea. I'm a very disorganized writer. But I can tell you that we're about 65 percent into the story.

2. What happened to the other two assassins?

A. If you haven't figured it out, all three figures were just illusions. I think Ysabel kinda figured that out.

Okay, only two this time. I think I worked up my skin allergies by finishing this chapter in the garden so… yea… I'm out.

Until my next update,

Forever,

Val.