The presence of the clipboard in the hands of the little butterball let him know just how long and involved this little Q&A session was going to be. It was his own fault, really – he'd been lolling around the main room after hiding all of 'Freezer's shoes in the bathtub. Either fact could have been responsible for his current situation.

Still, just because he'd been cornered by the butterball and was now going to have to talk to him, that didn't mean he couldn't have some fun with the kid. Of course, the fact that Tetsuro seemed to either be genuinely interested in him or very good at faking things like that made the situation more bearable. He might even give the kid some actual information as opposed to just some crap that sounded plausible. He'd been in his own body more than long enough to figure out what was what for himself, after all.

As the session began, with Tetsuro looking like some bright and eager little five-year-old – or maybe like a chubby little squirrel – he started to genuinely enjoy the whole question-and-answer thing. Not that he'd be telling the little butterball any of that, but maybe if the kid was as smart as he thought he was, he'd figure that out on his own. Sitting back in his chair as Tetsuro started to sort through his notes, looking like he was trying to figure out what, if anything, he wanted to ask next, Aptom smirked slightly.

Even though he was going to leave soon, what with getting bored cooped up in this place and wanting to go hunt some of those tasty Zoanoids that had been showing up more and more often lately, he could at least offer some answers to the kid who had been so persistent in pursuing them. Some. Maybe not all and maybe not most, but he would give him a few.

During a lull in the conversation, Aptom sat back and looked at his cards. One of the things he couldn't quite figure out about the kid was why he had such a fetish for playing Go Fish; it really didn't seem like a game the kid would have been interested in. It seemed too "kiddy" for someone who was trying to find out everything he could about Chronos' genetic-manipulation methods. It was kind of an interesting dichotomy, how Tetsuro presented himself versus what people would think from hearing about him.

And he really had to stop thinking about things like that before even he started to think he'd gone soft in the head. Putting down his cards when it looked like ol' Tetsuro had thought up another question to ask him, though what was on that clipboard if it wasn't the questions he'd already thought to ask, Aptom wasn't sure, he waited for the kid to start talking again. When he did, Aptom rested a hand on his cards and started to speak in his turn.

Thinking about his past with Chronos wasn't something that he liked to do all that often. In fact he really preferred to avoid the subject whenever possible, but with this kid he could make something of an exception. Not enough that he'd be forced to relive any truly horrific memories, but enough that he'd give the little butterball a good look at what being a Lost Unit in Chronos really meant.

That would probably be enough to scare him off asking ever again.

XxXxXxX

Mr. Fried'rich had told him that the people who were going to be the first group of Alvix Zoanoids had been chosen today, but he'd also said that Dad was back now. That meant that he couldn't go check on his Alvix and see how they were doing, since he really didn't want Dad to find out about them until they were done. Mr. Fried'rich had said he would take care of the Alvix while Dad was around, so that was nice to know. He'd also said that he would call him when they were done, and Kenji thought that was really nice of him. He'd thanked Mr. Fried'rich and hugged him a little, too.

Now he was sitting in their room, waiting for Dad to get back. When the door opened and his dad walked into the room, Kenji tried really hard not to look like he was trying not to say something.

"Kenji, is something wrong?"

He shook his head, really hoping that Dad would be happy with that and wouldn't ask him any more questions. He really, really wanted his Alvix Zoanoids to be a surprise.

"Kenji, there's no need for you to hide things from me. I can protect you from anything that troubles you, my son," Dad said, and then put his hand on his shoulder. "Now, what is it that you're so troubled about?"

"Nothing, Dad," he said.

"Kenji." Dad was looking really serious now. "I know you don't like to worry me about things, but I only want to know what's going on so I can help you. If you don't tell me, then I can't take care of you very well. And I only want to know because I worry about you when I'm away, just like you worry about me when I'm not here. Do you understand that, Kenji-chan?"

He nodded; he really didn't want to worry Dad, especially not when there was really nothing going on. Dad had enough to think about; he was busy a lot of the time, so when he did get to come home, he had to want to rest. That's what Kenji would have wanted to do if he'd been working all day.

"I understand, but there's really nothing going on, Dad."

"Is that true, or are you just saying that so I won't worry about you?"

"It's nothing, really. Mr. Purg'stall has been taking really good care of me."

"I'm glad to hear that, Kenji-chan. Now what are you hiding from me?"

"I'm not hiding anything from you, Dad," he lied, feeling a little bad but not wanting to spoil the surprise he had before it was all ready.

"I know you're not telling me the truth, Kenji-chan. Now if something's been going on here that you don't like, I want to know about it so I can do something."

"But, Dad… it's a secret."

XxXxXxX

Kenji didn't really seem to understand that all he wanted to do was to protect him. Whatever was going on, it was clearly causing Kenji distress, and the last thing Imakarum wanted was for Kenji to be uncomfortable in any way. But since Kenji seemed determined to keep whatever was bothering him a secret, Imakarum knew that the only way he was going to find out what Kenji was so worried about was to… find out from him directly.

He didn't particularly like the idea of doing… something like that to his son, but he knew it was the only way to find out what had been troubling him.

Gently wrapping Kenji in his arms, as if he was merely going to cuddle the boy, Imakarum gently touched their foreheads together. Subtly working himself into his son's mind, he found that Kenji wasn't distressed after all, merely excited. He also found that he'd inadvertently spoiled a surprise that Kenji had been preparing for him. He'd have to apologize for that, of course.

Still, Kenji's safety came first above all other concerns. He'd explain that to Kenji when he apologized. The boy would understand – everything he did was to protect him from harm, after all.

XxXxXxX

It had taken some time to explain things to Crouger's parents, even with the headway that Crouger himself had started to make. In the end, he'd been forced to equip his Guyver unit and direct Crouger in equipping his own before they would believe that what he was trying to tell them wasn't simply some made-up story. Though how they had come to that conclusion, when it was obvious that neither he nor Crouger had met before, he didn't know.

The fact that Crouger's father had decided to stay behind, while it was his own choice and at least fairly logical given his line of work, was troubling. If he was taken by Chronos, there was a chance that Crouger would suffer the same psychological trauma as Fukamachi, and that would be rather troublesome. Admittedly, Crouger did not seem to be one to succumb to weak sentiment the way that Fukamachi did, but first impressions could be misleading.

As the transport that he had arranged to bring them along the first leg of their journey pulled away from the Crouger household, he turned his attention to the newest Guyver. The younger boy looked distraught, but not as much as Fukamachi would have in his place. He knew; he had had ample time to observe Fukamachi in various states of mind.

"Are you still troubled, Crouger?"

"I guess," the boy said, obviously morose. "I mean, I know it's his decision and all, and I know he's got all these big responsibilities as a fireman, but I can't help wishing that he'd chosen to come with us. He's pretty much putting his life in the hands of Chronos."

"If there is anything I can do for you," he began, trusting Crouger to fill in the rest but still curious to know what the boy's reaction would be.

"I don't think there's much, unless you can alter time or send someone to keep an eye on my dad."

As Crouger turned away from him, leaning his forehead against the darkened glass of the window, Agito reflected on the younger boy's requests. His first seemed to be merely a joke, or an offhanded statement not meant to be taken seriously. His true request, however, was a great deal more practical than any of Fukamachi's would have been.

"I could post some of my soldiers around your father to ensure that no harm comes to him."

"Thanks," Crouger said, turning to smile at him. "That means a lot to me."

When the younger Guyver – younger even than Fukamachi, he suspected – turned back to his observation of the passing roadway, Agito considered him. The red-haired boy seemed to be more sensible than Fukamachi; time would tell if he would be as useful.

"Huh, looks like they're adding on to the old Brant building," Crouger muttered, clearly talking to himself.

He was fully prepared to ignore what the youngest of the Guyvers had said, as the one-sided conversation was clearly not meant for his ears, but then the name of the building that he had mentioned registered.

"Brant?" he repeated, fixing his gaze on Crouger. "You wouldn't be talking about Brant Medical Technologies, would you?"

"That's what the place is called. I could never quite manage to get that name to stick in my head; Mom says they're some kind of health organization. They've even offered her a job a few times – at least that's what she told me."