Disclaimer: I don't own Tiger & Bunny in any way, shape, or form. I just like to play with the characters.

Summary: By this point, it's not a surprise when Kotetsu takes a hit for Barnaby. This result however, is one no one was expecting. [Future Fic]

"What the hell is this guy's power!?" Rock Bison yelled out, dodging a bright beam of azure. The Heroes were scattered around a bank on the Gold Stage, some of them checking the prone bodies lying on the ground while others were trying to pin down the short, skinny robber that kept firing at them, switching between a completely normal gun and their NEXT power.

"No idea, but it looks like he's got a two minute powering-up window," Blue Rose shouted back, crouching near a guard's slack body. The woman had fallen half-in, half-out of the main entrance, leaving both her and the ice wielder open to attack. Blue Rose scanned the area, then let go of an ice gun to grab an arm, tucking them both inside and out of the range of fire.

"Great," groaned Tiger. "He gets two minutes to power up, and that's when I'll be powered down."

"You want a one shot power?" huffed a voice beside him. "Block the first punch, then need dodge the rest?"

"No, but-"

"Then stop complaining!" snapped Barnaby. He pointed to a shaking section of roof and ran ahead, sliding under and shoring it up as it began to fall; Tiger followed, grabbing the bodies in the way and running them out to waiting ambulances. His partner kept the area from being buried. "Blue Rose, a little help please?"

A steady stream of ice flowed toward him, taking the weight off of Barnaby's shoulders as Tiger came back for another two bodies.

"Good news!" called out Origami Cyclone, checking on an unlucky family. All four of them were down, two well-dressed parents in front of three elementary school children. "Whatever he's doing, it's not fatal!"

"Well now, that is good news," said Fire Emblem, directing their flames to herd the man out into the open. "Hopefully the little cretin can undo it too."

"Fire Emblem!"

With another bolt of fire, the corner trap became one for the hunter instead of the hunted. The rest of the Heroes could only watch as the arc shot forward, barely missing due to a sharp wind that gusted through the area, pulling the fire wielder just enough from its path.

"Thanks, Sky High!" Fire Emblem called out, throwing a kiss to the flying man; the wind wizard waved, then stayed overhead, trying to see how he could best fit into the situation.

"Stop moving around!" yelled the man, stomping his foot. "That wasn't fair!"

"What's not fair is what you're doing to these poor people!" Tiger yelled in response, returning from getting two more to safety. "Give yourself up!"

Another arc zapped through the air, a yellow, crackling one that sputtered out harmlessly as it hit a wall behind the mysterious NEXT user.

"If you think it's so unfair, you stop moving first!" yelled Dragon Kid, letting lose a few more. None of them hit their target, but as they cracked into the wall, dust rose in the air. A wave of crumbling bricks came crashing down, and there was a silence across the street.

"Did... did I get him?" She took a step closer, her staff at the ready just in case.

"I can't see," reported Sky High, hovering. "Be careful, and again, be careful. He could be anywhere..."

"Thanks for the warning," muttered Barnaby, taking a step forward, tapping the side of his helmet to see how far it could penetrate. "It's too much for my scanners too, I'm getting nothing."

"Sky, dear, can you blow this dust away? Gently?"

"To capture this heinous villain? My pleasure, and again, my pleasure."

He began to draw in the winds, and slowly, the cracked street revealed itself. Busted doors leaking broken glass. Bricks with scorched outlines from where they'd been hit. All of the damage appeared, but there was no sign of the man they'd been fighting.

"Shit."

"Eloquent as ever Rock Bison," commented Fire Emblem.

"He couldn't have gone far," said Wild Tiger, looking over the aera. "Pair up, let's see if we can flush him out before his timer resets. Bunny and I will take the bank; there might be more civilians in there."

Pair by pair they called out their destinations, ending with Sky High latching onto Origami Cyclone for additional aerial support, the shapeshifter turning into a backpack for easy grippage . Tiger watched as they scattered, then stepped into the bank, stonework crunching beneath his feet, and a similar sound proving that Barnaby was right behind him.

"Do you think he came back in here?"

"I think that if he'd hoofed it, we would've seen him," said Tiger after imagining different scenarios for a minute. The walls of the bank were a marbled layer of green and ivory, which matched the paler green carpets. The Hero had to smile at his memory of Mr. Legend. "We've got about what, a minute left? He should still be charging."

"Speed over stealth then," declared Barnaby. He zipped by his partner, stopping at the first doorway on the left. "You take right."

Tiger nodded, checking behind the first door. Chairs, desks, paper everywhere, but no villain. The second door was to a previously locked staff-only section. Inside the room, a half-cut blue goodbye cake sat on the table, with one piece smashed into the carpeting. The third to a wheelchair-accessible bathroom. Zilch.

"Anything on your end Bunny?" he called out down the hallway.

"Nothing." The blond sighed, pushing his face plate up to look at Tiger. "Maybe one of the others got lucky?"

Tiger pushed his up as well, watching his partner.

"No." He looked around, wishing they had x-ray vision. "No, I know he came in here. I can feel it in my gut."

"Far be it from me to ignore your instinct," Barnaby smirked. "How about the top floor then, and working our way down from there? And if he runs outside, then one of the others can capture him."

Tiger agreed, zipping behind his partner up the plush, carpeted stairs.

"Wait. Did you hear something?"

Bunny stopped, and they both paused, straining their senses.

"Nothing. What do you hear?"

"... I thought I heard breathing," said Wild Tiger, climbing another step. "But I can't tell if it's coming from this floor, or the one under us."

Barnaby bounded up from the landing, hitting the top of the stairs in a wary stance.

"I think I found the source of your breathing."

Tiger came up behind him, making a face as he saw a group of seven people lying in the middle of the floor about twelve meters away, looking just like the customers had downstairs. Limp. Unmoving. Dead. A mixture of men and women, young and old, but all of them wearing stylish suits, with a few hats fallen to the wayside.

"So this is where most of the staff went," said Barnaby. "I was wondering."

"I'll start ferrying them out, you tell Agnes that we're going to need more ambulances," sighed Tiger, stepping forward to where a young brunette. A beeping startled both of them at the same time a sound came from the stairwell they had just left. Behind them was who they were hunting, black shirt and frayed blue-jean body framed by the doorway. Tiger saw the angle, knew what was going to happen. As if in slow motion, the man's forefinger stuck out and jerked backwards; as dangerous to them as a gun going off.

"Where's that noise coming from?" Where Barnaby stood meant he couldn't see the danger.

"Bunny!"

Barnaby was turning when Tiger knocked him over, and following that were blossoms of reds, oranges, and yellows. A boom, then an avalanche of heat. The landing below their feet fell into the darkness, and it was only a lucky catch by Barnaby that prevented the two Heroes from following the crash of debris.

"Ugh... come on Tiger, you first," said Barnaby, holding onto his partner's surprisingly lax grip. His voice was tense with the strain of keeping the two of them up. "I'm not going to be able to hold on for long."

There was nothing. No questions asking if he was okay, or if the people they'd found were okay. No moaning about damage fees or sneaky villains. No hands searching for a purchase to climb up with.

"No..." Barnaby tried to look down to check, but felt a shift in his balance. A second try had his shoulder groaning. He gave up on the action. "Tiger!"

"Yes!"

Barnaby looked up to see the man cheering, fist pumping the air. "And I thought you two would be the hard ones to get rid of!"

"What did you do to him!?" demanded Barnaby. Tiger's hand slipped by a millimeter.

"Wasn't trying to get him, was trying to hit you." The man shrugged, grin wide and brown eyes sparkling. "A kinda two-for-one deal since he would've fallen after the explosion."

"What. Did. You. Do?" Barnaby's voice was hard, and each word could have cut glass if he'd had that ability.

"He got hit; not my fault."

"What does your power do?"

"I can get rid of souls."

Barnaby almost lost his grip on Tiger at that revelation, and a cold feeling of panic gripped his stomach.

"Bring him back!"

"No can do Hero. I bring him back, and you two capture me. This is my best bet for getting out of Stern Bild, go see the world."

"By robbing a bank? Destroying countless lives? Why didn't you just get on a bus!?" Barnaby had to bite his tongue from saying more.

"Man you're getting testy. Look, about the whole soul thing. I didn't destroy it or anything. I just got rid of it. Pushed it out of his body if you really want to know." The man sighed, then sat down at the edge of the gaping hole, legs swinging. "With you hanging around though, I've got two choices. I can either leave now and you might be able to chase me. Or I can wait about two more minutes, and push yours out too. Volia, two Heroes who won't bother me, or anyone else, ever again."

"The others will get you." promised Barnaby, trying to ignore how calmly the man was discussing their lives. Or, technically, deaths. His right hand, the one that was gripping Tiger's arm, began to sweat inside the armor.

"Not before you run out of power, or mine comes back again. And let's face it, if your partner's life wasn't dangling from your hand, over a fourteen-floor drop, you'd both be on my heels. Oh, and if you're wondering how a single bomb managed to blow through the other floors, there was a series planted to go off when this one did."

"Fine. Run," barnaby said through gritted teeth. "But fix him before you go. We can't pursue you if we're both out of power." It was almost as if that was the magic phrase; Barnaby felt the exact instant that his power went down. Weariness settled over him, and Kotetsu actually became heavy.

"He can. I've watched HERO TV enough to know he can keep up with Sky High, thanks to those cords of his."

"I'll tell him not to," offered Barnaby. There was a snapping sound from where he'd snagged a remaining part of the banister. "Please!"

"Yeah, I think I've made up my mind. Best of luck Heroes!" the guy said, smiling. He stood back up, walking away. Barnaby felt Tiger's body drop another fraction of an inch.

"Come back!" Greeting him was the creaking of the wood that held the two Heroes, both in their suits, and one of them dead weight. "Tiger. Dammit it Tiger, wake up! Kotetsu!" The only response was the unconscious Hero's hand slipping from within his grip. "Great... at least we're going to die together. I won't have to explain this to Kaede."

A faint scream of rage echoed in the stairwell.

"Yoohoo~!"

Barnaby wanted to cry in relief at Fire Emblem's voice. He allowed himself a sigh and a grin.

"UP!" he yelled out, trying to keep his grip on Tiger. "Come on old man,just a few more minutes, help's on the way."

Thankfully, in the position that they were hanging in, he could see the moment that Rock Bison, holding the pissed-off villain of the day by the neck, appeared with Fire Emblem close behind.

"Hanging around for me Handsome?" trilled the fire user. "I'm flattered."

"We're slipping," answered Barnaby curtly. "Flirting later, rescue now."

Rock Bison pushed the guy against the wall.

"I'd suggest not moving," recommended Fire Emblem, moving to stand next to the man. "Because the second I see your arm start to twitch, I'll release this fire ball."

They held out a hand, and the flames that appeared were about the height and width of a basketball.

"Not even thinking of moving, promise," the guy said nervously.

"What the hell happened here?" grunted Rock Bison, grounding himself with a pillar piece he found nearby.

"He took the hit," said Barnaby. "Made himself into a shield."

"Of course he did." There was a sigh. "Hold onto him, I'm going to grab your arm and reel you in like that, okay?"

Barnaby nodded. True to his word, Bison grabbed hold of his arm and pulled. After a few heart-stopping moments when they were both dangling, dependent only on one man's strength, they were both on the main floor again, Barnaby gasping and Tiger doing nothing.

He crawled over to his prone partner, concentrating on reassuring himself that there was still a heartbeat, breathing... the important things he hadn't been able to check when he'd been holding them both up.

"You have one minute to tell us how to fix him," hissed Rock, approaching the terrified man.

"Oh goddess don't kill me!"

"I'd suggest you tell us then," encouraged Fire Emblem, the flames in their hand playfully snapping about.

"I don't know, I've never needed to reverse it!"

Barnaby's heart sank. He looked at Tiger again.

"Dammit, he's moving!" shouted Rock Bison. Barnaby turned back, too late to do anything. His breath caught. Rock Bison, in his heavy armor, and at his size, wasn't going to be able to dodge this. It was bittersweet to see Fire Emblem jump in front of him just as that hideous blue arc flashed again.

And then the man's jaw dropped. His eyes bulged. Staggering backwards, he fell like a log.

"You broke my mirror," complained Fire Emblem, looking down into their hands.

"... what happened?"

Barnaby turned around at the sound of Kotetsu's voice.

"Hey, you're back! Where did you go?"

"I... I think I'm going to head back home." Kotetsu stood up, wobbling. "You guys mind finishing this up by yourselves?"

Rock Bison and Fire Emblem exchanged a glance.

"Um... sure... we've got it." Barnaby watched as his partner stumbled off, clutching his heart. "... did Tiger just leave without rescuing people? And what happened "

"That group over there? No worries, me and Sky High I'll get them down," said Rock Bison. "Fire Emblem can take care of one little unconscious body."

"Which means Handsome, that it's up to you to take care of our Tiger."

The subtle command took a little while to sink in, but when it did Barnaby was sprinting as fast as he could. He had a partner to check on.

おまけ (Bonus)

"Will you tell me? What was it that spooked you so much earlier today?"

Kotetsu sighed.

"I don't know what happened, but I saw Tomoe. When she was younger... not sick."

"Oh."

He brushed Barnaby's hair out of the man's green eyes.

"She had a message for me. Told me you were a good catch, and not to let you go."

Letter from the Soup - S for Shield

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