A/N: I'M SORRY IT TOOK SO LONG TO UPDATE! B-but thank you Digi and SujufangirlLiliL for both your reviews of complaint at the lack of updating ;w; I love your reviews, it makes me remember how horrible I am to you guys ;;; and it paid off, here's the next chapter!

I'll try not to let this happen again ;;;

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"It'll wash out, stop fussing already."

Marth was checking his hair in dismay for about the fiftieth time that hour alone since the argument. He was refraining from talking about anything relating to Pike…actually, he was refraining from saying anything. He wouldn't even look at me.

"Marth?"

A sigh left him and as he turned to finally face me, he turned right back around and leaned closer to the mirror, parting his fringe through his fingers as he examined the extent of the damage even further.

I let out a groan of defeat. "Gods Marth, if it bothers you so much, I'll dye my hair green so the focus isn't only on you."

I head Marth scoff, but I knew he meant to laugh. "When isn't the focus on you, Roy? You hair is already bright enough." It was a somewhat backhanded reply of 'no, don't do that Roy, it's inconvenient.'

I sighed and put my head on my knees, pouting. I wish he'd just come to bed already, it was getting late and if he kept all this up, I knew he'd be tired and grouchy in the morning. "Marth…."

"…I'm worried about Pike."

I blinked in response. I knew from experience about what I should say and what I shouldn't, but I couldn't help myself. "I'm not that bad of an influence, he'll still grow up to be the angel his dad was. I'm not gonna turn him into a devil or something."

Marth turned briefly to toss a brush at me; I deflected it with his pillow. "Shut up, I know that!" He seemed flustered that I called his deeper worry out.

I lowered his pillow and he looked away, embarrassed, but I could see he was thinking about something, it showed in the way he bit his lip. "It's just..."

I sighed again, tossing his pillow back into its spot. "I know. Pike got locked in his room again. But you were practically screaming at Ike to do something to punish Pike."

Marth flinched and crossed his arms, still refusing to look at me. "…I didn't expect Ike to punish Pike…this way, though." He sounded somewhat shocked that Ike would go to such extremities. To any other kid though, this would be cakewalk.

"Pike will be fine, he's a strong kid." I replied, though even I doubted that. Of anything Pike's ever been afraid of, the dark was his biggest fear. When he was extremely little, he used to carry a small torch around with him whenever he had to leave his room late at night. Even now he still sleeps with a bright nightlight.

Marth kept making that sullen expression and eventually I got up out of the spacious, warm bed and crossed to the closet, pulling out a shirt to toss on to accompany my pants. Marth looked over with a questioning expression, I looked back bluntly.

"Well, you're obviously so concerned about him, so I'm gonna go check up on him. I may even apologize too." I explained, stretching lightly and moving to slip out of the door.

"Wait, Roy-" I looked back expectantly and found myself face to face with my tall prince, how did he move so fast?

He leaned down and kissed me lightly on the lips, relief in his eyes. "…Thank you."

I simply smiled before moving out into the dark halls.

-

It was definitely cold out, and I shifted from foot to foot to keep myself warm as I slowly picked the lock on Ike's room's door. It was hard work, but it eventually paid off and the soft click accompanied the door swimming open ever so slightly. I sighed with triumph as I let myself in.

It was slightly warmer in here and I kept my footsteps light. Ike slept like...what was the opposite of a log? Well, he slept so damn lightly, if I even tapped the wall wrong, he'd wake up and kick my ass out.

I kneeled down slowly at the front of Pike's door and got to work on his lock, which was even more difficult than the front door- at least there I could afford a few mistakes, the soft metal against metal wouldn't reach as far as Ike's room to be able to rouse him.

It was slow work, and a few times I froze, hearing the sheets rustling from Ike's room (which was just behind me) and had to wait until I heard his breathing go back to even, silent inhales and exhales before I nervously set back at the lock.

The light click as the lock gave in scared the hell out of me, and I let out a shaky breath as I silently opened the door and walked in. "Pike..?" I whispered, my eyes adjusting to the even darker state of the room. My stomach dropped, his night-light had broken again.

But then I heard the shuffling of his sheets and a silent groan of almost what seemed like pain. The dark brought on pretty bad nightmares for him, from what I've heard- but then another sound came to my ears, and the moonlight through his window light up large, spanning features in front of his bed and I nearly screamed at the surprise running through me.

At first I was thrilled, I thought it was Pit again, come down to watch Pike as he sleeps- Even though Pit was pretty much just a spirit by now, he could still manage to make a few trips down to earth to see Ike and such, but as I took a gleeful step forwards, the moonlight glinted off something else and shone in my eyes.

A knife.

I watched in horror as the figure lifted its arms, a knife comfortably clutched in two hands, wings quivering lightly as it prepared to strike down, the moon eerily lighting this scene, silent and terrifying. With no thought running through my head, I cried out- whether to startle it or because I was so startled myself, I couldn't tell.

I could hear the shuffling of sheets, both from the room I was in and from Ike's bed as the figure spun around to stare, the knife brought down to its chest, eyes wide with shock at being caught. It was mere moments before Ike was at my side, anger at me for breaking into his space still forming on his lips when he saw what I saw.

Blood red eyes narrowed in anger and the figure turned to run, Ike yelled and tried to catch it, but it had already broken through the window, the loud smash resonating in the silence as it disappeared into the dark.

I stood, glued to the spot, Ike stood at the window, trying to catch a glimpse of what had tried to hurt his son, and we both jumped in shock at the light whimper that came from the bed, now covered in glass.

Wide, terrified blue eyes looked up and we rushed to Pike's side. Blinking back tears and shaking, Pike looked at us both. "D-dad..?"

Ike shushed him and ran his hands soothingly through Pike's hair before sending me a scared glance. I returned it.

I had seen it, those blood red eyes, Ike had seen it too. He was back.

And he was mad.