A/N: Sorry about the late update! It's been a little hectic with Father's day, another birthday, and starting a new partime job while keeping my studies going! Thank you for being patient!

DISCLAIMER: Do not own Finder Series or any of the cannon characters! This is purely a work of fiction! If you like it, please favorite and leave reviews!~

Chapter 21

Asami's POV

Wailing….that's all he had heard for the last fifteen minutes and it was gnawing at his sanity. Asami was aware that it couldn't be helped, but it was still the last thing he wanted to hear while trying to process everything. Not only was his sanity running thin, but so was his patience. It had been more than half an hour since the doctor had left running on a code blue, and they hadn't heard from anyone since. Anticipation and worry for the worse was building up within the group, and if that door didn't open soon he was going back there himself. This was his damn hospital and he was getting seriously livid with the fact they were taking forever on informing them of what was going on. Not the mention Suoh looked ready to completely fall apart.

Kirishima, who no longer had calls to distract himself, looked lost in his own head. Just knowing his friend, Asami knew they were in the same boat. Overwhelmed. Akihito was rocking Masa, trying desperately to shush his cries and wails, but being distraught himself it just wasn't working. Not to mention he was fairly certain the baby was hungry and cranky, and a hospital was no place for him to be…especially not in this situation.

"Akihito…why don't you and Masahiko head home? He's getting hungry and tired, and Kiyomi needs you there." Asami gave his lover a meaningful look. "I'll call you the minute we know anything." Akihito looked perplexed of what to do, wanting to stay but knowing it was best for the kids if he left. So reluctantly the blonde nodded.

Fei stood up from his seat, meeting Asami's golden eyes. "Yoh and I will drive him home and stay with him and the kids." This was one of the few times he felt he could actually trust his former enemy with his precious Akihito without him there, though the Baishe leader had been much better since getting with Kei.

"I'll walk the three of you out then." He said, grabbing the baby bag before his lover could reach for it. Shockingly Akihito didn't bicker with him over it, something Asami appreciated it. A lot of the time he saw it as one of the cute qualities his Kitten possessed, but at the moment it would do nothing but add to the black pool of stress he was drowning in. Either Aki realized this, or he was just too worried and distracted with the crying baby in his arms to be his usual difficult self.

Quietly they all exited the hall to the elevator, and then out of the hospital to the parking deck. Once they arrived at Fei's very extravagant and expensive rental, Asami helped Akihito secure the baby's pumpkin seat into the back. When everything was set and his lover was in the car, he turned to Yoh and Fei. "You wreck with them, or drive recklessly…I will kill you both. Do you understand?"

"Don't worry, Yoh is a safe driver." Fei assured the crimelord, Yoh nodding stiffly as well. Asami knew that was true, but he still couldn't help his unwavering concern when it came to his family. Watching the other two men get into the car, he started to turn when suddenly he heard Akihito's voice coming

"I completely forgot! Um…Asami, it was Jun. Jun's the one who hit Mayuri. He was…aiming for me and Mayuri pushed me out of the way." Akihito said, looking guilty…and then looking nervous. Asami's eyes were lit aflame with rage, though he couldn't say he was at all surprised. He had already guessed it considering everything, but getting the confirmation just made it feel real.

"Did you get the license plate of the car?" He asked his lover slowly, throat feeling dry.

"I-I….I didn't think about it. I was too worried about the kids and Mayuri…" Akihito muttered bitterly, and the crimelord could see just how angry the boy looked with himself.

"That's an understandable thing to do, Akihito. Don't fret over it, we will find him without it. There are still traffic cameras." The blonde gave him a weak smile, nodding. It didn't make him feel better, did it? "Alright, well if I'm not home before bedtime, tell Kiyomi goodnight for me."

"I'll call you so she can hear it from you."

"That's a better solution, so do that. I'll keep my phone's ringer on. Be safe, and if anything happens call me." Asami said, bending down to the window to brush his lips against his lovers in a soft kiss. Now he was even more reluctant to let Akihito out of his sight, because if Jun was willing to try a stunt like that in public…he doubted that the crazy bastard would think twice about doing it again.

"I will….I promise."

Thirty minutes ago Asami's patience was running thin, well now it was running on borrowed time. Every passing minute was eating away at the three of them, but he could see the breakdown happening silently in Suoh's mind. He wasn't going to sit and watch it happen any longer. It wasn't too long ago he had been in his friend's position, so he knew what it felt like to sit there, worrying yourself to insanity. Asami got up from his seat, crossing the room over to the door the doctor had come out of not long ago. Opening the door, he just about ran smack into a male nurse.

"I'm sorry!" The boy apologized immediately, bowing his head. Asami felt the anger to kill someone from how long they were made to wait, but seeing this kid shaking in fear made him reconsider. At least not him.

"What's the news on Mayuri? That's why you're here, yes?" He backed up to let the nurse actually enter the room.

"U-Um yes!" Clearing his throat and ushering himself in, the nurse wouldn't look up at any of them, "We were able to get his heart started back, and we're doing everything we can to get him stable again. But ah…the doctor wanted to ask if the patient had ever spoken about donating his organs…"

Suoh went pale, all color draining from his face and Asami was positive the giant man was about to faint. Eyes slitting into a glare, his fist connected with the wall next to the boy's face, eliciting a terrified cry from the nurse. "You can go tell the doctor that if he wants to keep his own life, then he will save Mayuri's, do you understand?"

"Y-Yes sir!" The boy was quick to disappear behind that door again, and if Asami wasn't livid then he would have felt a little bad. That kid was barely out of medical school he was sure, and was basically thrown to the wolves because the doctor didn't want to face them himself. Coward.

Asami took his seat beside Kirishima, staring down at his clenched hands. He felt so useless, just sitting here and waiting to know if one of his best friends was going to pull through or not. Though Asami didn't usually blame himself for things like this, in this one instance he felt suffocated with guilt. When he really went back and thought about it, Asami knew that all that happened could be tied back to him. And it wasn't even the fact that he was the one who had Jun taken down from head of the family…no. Everything that had happened to Mayuri was his fault. It was all tied back to the first time they met, so many years ago…

Flashback.

Ryuichi did not by any means want to sit through another yakuza meeting with his parents. Maybe that kid Jun was fine with it, but for the golden eyed boy it was nothing but boring! He wanted to go play! Look up at his mother, he whined for the third time. "Come on Mama, I wanna go play with Kei and Yusuke!" It wasn't fair they got to go play but he couldn't!

His mother looked over at his father, who looked both a little annoyed and reluctant…but after meeting Ryuichi's pleading eyes he nodded. "Fine, for a little while. When it gets dark the three of you need to be back inside." His face lit up.

"Yes sir!" Not needing to be told twice, he quickly ran out of the Miketsukami household and to the huge yard surrounding the estate. It didn't take long for him to locate the two boys, the well-dressed Ryuichi running towards them while waving his hand to get their attention. "Dad said I could come play with you guys!~"

Yusuke smiled, his shy blue eyes averting. Though he was the oldest of the three of them, Yusuke was always a follower when they played together…and Ryuichi was always the leader! "Cool! I was about to show Kei my baby brother…do you wanna meet him too?"

Ryuichi blinked, frowning. "But you're the little brother, aren't you? I mean there's only two of you." Yusuke shook his head.

"No, father had another baby…but he's not allowed in the main house. Mama doesn't want him there, so he has to stay in the old house where the servants live. I go and play with him a lot, even though I'm not really supposed to…"

"Why doesn't your mom want him in the house if that's her son? And why is it against the rules for you to go play with him?" He had so many questions…

Kei pushed his glasses up, stepping up beside Ryuichi and grabbed his arm. "Ryuichi…you shouldn't press people for information that's not your business. It's rude."

"No, It's fine! Um…he's not mama's son. She says that he's a whore's son…whatever that means. And she says I can't play with him because he's not really my brother, but father told me once that he was." Okay this is just more confusing!

"That's not fair! He needs people to play with too! Let's go play with him so he's not lonely!" Yusuke smiled and nodded, beginning to walk across a stone path. They followed the eight year old until they came across an older house hidden behind over grown trees, moss growing up the side of it. Ryuichi could see from the outside that there were bars on the windows. This wasn't a house…it was a prison!

Horrified at what he was seeing, he walked up to the porch while Yusuke took an old key from his pocket and unlocked the front door. Inside it was dark, the lights on the walls only providing a dim light for the entryway. He could hear footsteps upstairs, ones of adults so Ryuichi assumed it was a few servants. "Mayuri? Mayuri it's your big brother!" Yusuke called out into the house, his voice echoing.

The pattering of little footsteps came from a room next to them, and moments a tiny boy peeked his head out of a doorway. He had lighter brown hair down to his shoulders, uncut and messy. The boy, Mayuri, wore a long baggy t-shirt that fell just above his ankles and was running around bare foot. He looked malnourished just at a casual glance, but really looking at the three year old Ryuichi could see dark circles under his eyes and bruises on his arms that he assumed was from falling. The thing about this kid that really stood out though were his eyes…Ryuichi had never seen anything like them! They were different colors, one a very light blue and the other amber brown.

"Onii-san…Who they?" Mayuri pointed at the two new people, his free hand moving up his mouth where he started sucking on his thumb.

Yusuke smiled kindly and pointed to first the older of the younger boys, "This is Ryuichi," his finger moved to the boy in glasses, "And this is Kei. They're my friends."

Mayuri slowly pointed to each of them. "Ryu…iki...'n….Kei?" Ryuichi couldn't help but giggle when the boy couldn't pronounce his name, finding the little boy very cute.

"You can just call me Ryu, Mayuri!" Ryuichi looked around, frowning. "So ah..where do you play at in this place?"

"Do you mind showing them your room, Mayuri?" Yusuke asked the small child, resting a hand on his head. Mayuri eagerly nodded, grabbing his brother's hand before leading them up the old wooden stairs. It was dark throughout the house, but it was very clean. There wasn't a speck of dust on any surface, so at least the kid wasn't living in filth, but the fact he was alone here still irked Ryuichi. It must be so lonely…

They reached the bedroom and the moment the door slid open, he felt his hands clench into fists. The room was small, the walls left white and the room had very little color. There was a futon rolled up in the corner of the room, so the boy didn't even sleep on a western bed like Ryuichi had become accustomed to. Other than a few toys in the floor, a dresser, and a small bookshelf littered with picture books, the room was very bare and empty. Seeing this, Ryuichi knew he had to do something! He wouldn't stand for this! He-man wouldn't let someone live like this, so he wouldn't either!

"This isn't a bedroom, this is a prison! This whole place is a prison! You can't live here anymore, it's not fair! I'm going to get you out of here and you're going to come live with me! My mama won't mind!" Ryuichi said, voice filled with determination.

"U-Um…Ryuichi…I don't think that's a good idea…we could really get into some trouble…"

"Nonsense Kei! Just like He-Man, by the power of Grayskull we have the power! And from what I've heard up to this point, that woman who makes him stay here is just like Skeletor! Evil to the core! So we've gotta save him!"

Mayuri blinked, eyes wide. "He-Man? Who dat?" Oh god, it's worse than I thought! They don't even let him watch the best show ever! They're torturing him!

"He-Man is only the best Superhero ever! He's better than superman or even batman, and he rides a Battlecat! I'm just like He-Man, I save people! And I'm going to save you so you don't have to live here alone anymore!"

Yusuke looked down at his little brother, looking conflicted before he nodded. "Okay, as long as you'll let me see him then I'm going to help…"

"Of course you can! My mama says you're a good boy, so you can come visit him whenever you want to! As long as you don't let anyone else know he's there!"

"I won't, I promise…if Mayuri is happy there then I'll keep it secret!" The boy they were discussing just looked really confused, continuously pulling on his brother's shirt sleeve. Yusuke bent down to his brother's height. "You don't like living here, do you Mayuri?" He shook his head, "Well Ryuichi is going to let you stay with him. I'll still be able to see you too! Isn't that great?~"

"Mhm!" Mayuri mumbled around his thumb.

Ryuichi grinned, looking around the bare room. "Before we go, you should pack some clothes and any toys you wanna bring! But I'll share mine too, just not my He-Man belt. That's mine. Oh! And I have some old clothes you can wear too!" After getting an enthusiastic reply from the toddler, they spent the next fifteen minutes hunting down a plastic bag and getting a few things put into it. Clothes, his favorite blanket, a stuffed white and red monkey, and a couple of children's books. Once that was taken care of, the three of them snuck out back of the house to the huge stone wall that stretched around the entire property.

"Guys…this really isn't a good idea! We're going to get in a lot of trouble…" Kei said for what seemed like the hundredth time, exasperating Ryuichi. Why does he always question my plans?!

Rolling his eyes, Ryuichi looked back at his best friend. "Come on Kei, there's no way we'll get into trouble! The grownups are all inside doing their business stuff, so we have all the time to get him outta here! Don't wuss out on me, you're supposed to be my Orko!" His "encouraging" words did little to make Kei feel better, instead only making the shorter boy more anxious. Kei kept fiddling with his glasses, something Ryuichi had noticed he did when he was nervous. He worries too much! "Guess you're playing Cringer today, aren't you? Fine, if you're going to be a scaredy cat about being caught, you climb over first. I'll even help you over, your welcome!"

Bending down, he pointed to his shoulder. "Just climb on my shoulders and get over." Kei was shaking with nerves, groaning and muttering about how much trouble they were going to get into as he reluctantly did as Ryuichi said. He stepped up on the boy's shoulder, using it to boost himself up and over the wall. Yusuke followed not long after (Carrying Mayuri's bag of things), leaving just Ryuichi and Mayuri on the other side. "Alright Mayuri, it's your turn! Do what your brother did and get over the prison wall, okay?"

Mayuri toddled and stumbled over to him, determined not to take the thumb out of his mouth even when he started his attempt of getting his foot onto Ryuichi's shoulder in order to climb up. "You're going to need both your hands, Mayuri! Come on, you can do it!" He tried to help the three year old himself, pushing Mayuri up with the hand not bracing him.

"HEY?! WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?!" Ryuichi jumped at the sudden yelling voice, golden eyes going as wide as physically possible and Mayuri quickly scrambled off to hide behind him. He turned his head, his eyes landing on the eleven year old Jun. They had…never gotten along. Jun was always trying to intimidate him because he was older and bigger, but Ryuichi refused to be afraid of him! He was a big kid too now! He turned six a few weeks ago, and that meant he had a later bedtime! No big bully was going to mess with him anymore!

Standing up and gathering up his courage, Ryuichi puffed out his chest to try and look as big as possible. "We're getting Mayuri out of here! That evil woman had him locked up in prison, so we're saving him!"

"You don't even know what you're talking about! That…thing you're "saving" is nothing but a rat! Put it back where it belongs before I make you regret it." Jun sneered at him, crossing his arms. By this point the other two were making their way over the wall, overhearing what was going on. Mayuri was crying.

"I'm not scared of you, Jun! And he's not a rat, he's your brother….and I'm going to get him out of here even if I have to fight you to do it!" Bravery is a hero's best weapon!

The sinister smirk that came across Jun's face made Ryuichi's stomach flip, and he starting to feel sick. "You know, if you were any other kid your teeth would be on the ground right now. But because hitting you would get me in trouble…I'm just going to go tell our parents." Ryuichi gulped as he watched the boy run towards the house, his eyes moving to both his friends. They both looked terrified.

"I told you Ryuichi! I told you this was a bad idea, but you never listen to me!" Kei yelled, tears welling up in his eyes. Mayuri was still sobbing, though now he was being totted by his big brother….who also looked like he was going to cry. Crap…Crap…I can fix this! I'm the leader so I've gotta come up with a plan!

Ryuichi bit his lip, before he developed a little idea in his head. Maybe he wouldn't be a big kid…just for a few minutes… "Come on guys! Don't lose faith in me yet! I always have a backup plan! Let's head back into the house!" They all looked worried as to what this backup plan could be…but they would soon see.

Asami remembered that day vividly, though it happened so long ago. He remembered what he did to keep them all out of trouble, which in a short sweetened version was he ran "crying to mommy" and told her all about what kind of condition Mayuri was living in and how he had just wanted to save him. Of course his mother took his side, which automatically meant his father did as well…and basically Mayuri's father had his hands tied and had to move his "bastard son" into the main house. This all happened a few years before Asami's mother died, back when his father was actually a decent human being. But after his mother died, his dad just became a giant man whore and that's how Shinji was born. Thinking back to this day always filled the crimelord with mixed emotions. He saved Mayuri was being isolated away and neglected, but then because of him he was also put into a worse situation. If he had just minded his own business then Mayuri would have never of moved into that house…which meant the things Jun did never would have happened. At the end of the day, this all could be tied back to him.

Letting out a long sigh and now back to reality, his eyes moved from his shaking; clenched hands to the two men sitting across from him. Both of them shared that deep in thought, distant look. Kirishima looked absolutely haunted by whatever was going through his head…while Suoh looked reminiscent.

…..I wonder what they're thinking about.