A/N:

Eyyyyyyyy, apologies for not saying anything about that two-week hiatus on this fic. I was super busy with school, but, anyhow, I'm back now, and hopefully regular weekend updates will continue to the last chapter.

And now, time to enter the unnecessarily intense arc with new douchewad characters! :O Hope you enjoy! Chapter nine should be out next weekend!

-Reddie

After Barnaby had reached her flat, Kaede stepped out of the car feeling weightless and numb. She put a hand over her purse again, where she'd stowed away her folded staff.

"I think…" Kaede told him, voice only a notch above a murmur, "you should head home for now, Barnaby. I'm going to take a couple of days off from this case to clear my head."

There was a pause, and he stared at her for a moment, contemplating whether or not it'd be appropriate to ask why. He closed his mouth as soon as he'd opened it when she saw her blank brown eyes staring down at the ground.

Turning his back to her, he then said, "Alright. Contact me when you start up the investigation again."

"I will." She replied emptily. He couldn't help but look back at her, slowing ever so slightly, before continuing forward. She then added, voice barely above a mutter, "And… thanks for everything so far."

"Don't mention it," Barnaby replied without looking back, not sure if she heard him. She was already inside by that time.

As Kaede dropped herself onto her couch, Anya meowed at her, causing her to give up a sigh of relief at the fact that the automatic feeder had been on. She missed Anya so much, and she would've come home sooner had it not been for Yun's surprise visit. Tossing her purse over her head, she patted her lap.

Weakly, she called in a light voice, "Anya, baby, come here." The cat skittered towards her eagerly, plopping down on her stomach and purring as Kaede ran a hand through her fur. But all too quickly, Anya's ears perked up, and the cat hopped off, running for the litter box. "Nooo, come baaaaaaack." Kaede called in vain, reaching for the empty air. But Anya was too preoccupied to reply.

Carelessly, she reached up to unzip her purse, taking out her folded staff and holding it high.

"Happy birthday, Kaede!" Saito grinned, his mic turned up perhaps a bit too loud, but it didn't matter. "Since you're starting college soon, I made this just for you!"

"Oh, no! I can't accept this," Kaede squeaked abashedly. "I mean, what would people think of me if they found out I was carrying a weapon? Anyhow, I'm a NEXT! I don't need a weapon! I can just use Barnaby's Hundred Power and clock them, like Dad does!"

"But what if you're attacked by another NEXT?" Saito posed, "If you punch them, won't the Hundred Power disappear? And what if you don't know how to use their power?"

"Agh… no way, I'm not taking it…"

Slinging an arm around Saito, Kotetsu insisted, "Aw, come on, sweetie! He made it just for you!"

"But…"

"You really should." Barnaby quipped, "Cities up north aren't quite as friendly to women, let alone NEXT women. It'd be handy to have something like this on your person if you end up becoming a target in a violent crime."

Kotetsu frowned, "Geez Bunny, that's laying it on a little thick!"

"I'm just being honest with her," He crossed his arms. "It's necessary knowledge. She should learn how to fend for herself properly." Their eyes met, and Kaede looked away from him. She wasn't sure if he was babying her too or if he was actually attempting to treat her like an adult. Either way… he did have a point.

Saito put the staff forward, smiling at her with the invitation to take it.

She put the staff down, tucking it back into her purse. Before she got this from Saito, she actually carried around a folded knife she found on the way home from school one day. It was easier to hide than the staff because it fit right in her pocket, and when unfolded, the blade was nearly three inches, almost as long as her index finger. It used to be just perfect for her, and it came in handy once after a study meet in high school ran a little late one night. The horny fool didn't stand a chance. She'd only whipped it out and that alone was enough to send him running.

But of course, developing haphephobia changed all of that.

She dug up the staff the day after her dad had passed. Unfolded, the whole thing was nearly as long as her leg, measuring up to about three feet. To test it, she spent an afternoon behind her flat, banging it on bricks and metal, and the thing just wouldn't snap. She even powered up and tried breaking it over her knee, and even then, it still retained its shape. It truly was made for her. And most importantly, it kept other NEXTs at a distance.

She'd never used it against anyone before, and she didn't ever want to start. But if there was anything she learned over all those gruesome murder and rape case requests she'd rejected, it was that the world could be a very nasty place. There was a chance that someday, she'd be put on the spot again like she was when she was carrying the knife. And she'd have to be prepared to defend herself.

Kaede shook the thought of an altercation with Dr. Page from her mind. That was over. She was safe, and her dad's power had been retained. It didn't happen, but she had been prepared. It was unlikely they would ever meet again. That's right… Dr. Hitch would send in her files, Dr. Page would send in her files, and everything would check out just fine. Even so, the bad feeling rising in her gut simply at the thought of that Lunatic-loving bitch told her that was just wishful thinking.

"Dammit, Kaede." She ran a hand down her face, covering her mouth. She'd never been so angry over someone and she needed to get a grip before it spiraled out of control. First, she shifted the blame to her period. It was her third day and she was now more than halfway done, so the mood swings were likely signaling its approaching end. The change in hormones was merely exacerbating the situation for her… that was all. Things probably weren't as bad as she felt they were.

Well, if that was the case, a nap would be in order. Sleep was always a good remedy for period-related problems anyway…

She ended up sleeping the whole day away. Upon a routine visit to the bathroom, she'd found significantly much less blood, which gave her reason to smile just a little. Her period would clear up by the end of tomorrow, and now, her anger over Dr. Page wasn't quite as intense as yesterday. It was still there, but it didn't assault and torment her head the way it did before she took a nap. That was a definite improvement.

She spent a couple of hours snuggling with Anya, watching a movie on her laptop. Then by whim, she felt like going out and running some errands. What did she have to do again? Checking the fridge, she saw she needed to stock up on cabbage and eggs (for okonomiyaki, of course!), then waltzing into her bedroom, she noticed how full the laundry hamper was with her dirty clothes. In the kitchen, she caught glimpse of the automatic feeder's jar, and decided that it wouldn't be bad to stock up on pet food too if she got the chance. And taking a whiff, she narrowed eyes at the litter box.

When she found herself blowing her bangs out of her face while cleaning it out, she also thought a haircut wouldn't be too bad.

That could still work out, so long as her hairdresser wasn't a NEXT. She knew the old man down at the Whimsy Hair Salon was definitely not a NEXT, so she could just wait for him. Still, she was a little antsy about the idea of making contact with another person. It was something she was so used to avoiding at all costs that, even with the knowledge that someone wasn't a NEXT, she was still on edge from just the thought of it. Physical contact with other people was something she'd come to associate with her greatest fear, and it wasn't so easy to let herself relax over it now that she'd ingrained that fear into the back of her head.

Ever since her mother died, she'd been afraid of losing people, or at least losing whatever she had left of them. At her mother's death, she clung to her teddy bear, but she'd misplaced that. At Anju's death, she clung to her blue flower clip, and she'd unfortunately misplaced that too. And now, at her father's, she clung to her Hundred Power. That had to be the hardest thing to hold onto, because it meant letting so many other things go: warm embraces, friendly handshakes, caring pats on the back. She missed human contact more than she could say. She craved it so badly, and it hurt sometimes to think she'd never be able to hug some of her dearest friends ever again. But the thought of losing her dad for good hurt her so much more.

"I don't want you to continue carrying your past like that if it'll only be a burden on you."

"Well, it's a burden I'm willing to bear with," she muttered weakly as she headed out the door, saying it more to reassure herself than anyone else. But frankly… she wasn't sure just how long she could keep this up. What if one day, just by some stupid chance, she was jostled in the supermarket by no fault of her own or anyone else's? It could happen someday, and she was convinced it would, seeing that she'd lost everything else before too. That terrified her to no end, and she tried to keep it out of mind. But if losing her dad forever was inevitable… she'd have to find a way to deal with it, wouldn't she?

She blinked back her tears, trying to tell herself it would never happen.

Meanwhile, Barnaby decided he wanted to be of more assistance in the investigation other than just driving her around.

After searching twenty years of his life for his parents' murderer, he had become well acquainted with the process of investigation. Perhaps with his extensive experience, he could find even more on Dr. Page than Kaede could. Once he'd selected which case to focus on in particular (the one where there was missing information on patients at the Century Center), he got to work right away, skimming through the spots where he knew information would be. He uncovered various online journals, recordings made by terminally ill patients under her care. It was a poignantly heartbreaking thing to watch people documenting their last days with calm, peaceful voices, some sounding more resigned or cheerful than others.

And then he couldn't help but wonder if Kotetsu ever made any of these recordings.

It occurred to him then that he'd received some belongings in his will: an old button-up, some Mr. Legend memorabilia, and a phone with a cracked screen, amongst various other small items. For a year now, Barnaby couldn't really find it in him to even open any of the boxes they'd been stowed in. But… this was important. Otherwise, how else could he completely reassure Kaede that Kotetsu wasn't murdered? He needed proof.

He got up and left his computer for his room, pulling out a dusty box from under his bed.

"Anyhow, it's not like this is none of my concern. It's not like I'm butting in and being nosy or anything…" he defended against no one, voice directed at his wedding ring as he opened up the box. He took up a notebook first, thinking that could be a good bet. He flipped through, seeing pages of time increments labelled by date, coming to the conclusion that Kotetsu had been recording how many seconds he'd been losing when his powers started dissipating. The last recorded entry had him down to one minute. Barnaby frowned, unable to help thinking that time could be such a cruel, limiting thing. He always ended up wanting more of it, for himself, and for everyone he loved. His thoughts flickered back to Kaede, and he couldn't help but wish that she'd been able to spend more time with Kotetsu as well.

Reluctantly tucking the notebook away, he took up the cellphone next. He turned it on, only to find that it was low on battery. Thankfully, he found the charger buried in there too, and so that left him to plug it in and wait about an hour. Proceeding back to the computer, he gave a brief glance backwards, feeling like he could've sworn someone had called his name.

"Hey, Bunny."

He shook his head profusely and continued out, balling his left hand into a fist like he was clutching something.

The legality of the death penalty was definitely not something pleasant to ponder while buying red cabbage, especially for imaginative people. It was easy to think of heads rolling out from under the guillotine into the basket below the blade.

Kaede quickly tucked the cabbage into her basket, trying to shoo the grotesque thought away, but the words from the radio continued to flicker through her head. It really sickened her to think about what would happen if that bill were to pass. She did think it true for the most part that justice followed the limits of the law. But she understood that legal institutions weren't perfect either, which was why she never ended up working as a part of federal law enforcement. Something in her gut told her that she couldn't quite trust the institution completely, having been revealed at such a young age to the corruption of seemingly trustworthy men like Maverick. Private practice gave her the agency to proceed with investigations as she saw fit. No higher authorities held her back or ordered her to move in before she was ready to, and that was exactly the kind of freedom she needed. And besides, she didn't want to end up with a leash around her neck the way her dad and Barnaby did… not that she'd ever tell them that was how she ended up seeing it.

She couldn't help but sigh as she plucked an egg from a carton, before taking up a case. It was funny, really. She wanted to be a Hero herself at one point, taking on a stage name of something like Wild Chameleon or Kitty Kaleidoscope. But they took the show off the air before she could even think of that, because of that viral video and its subsequent generation trend. The video really did get to her, and it was part of the reason she was drawn to working in law enforcement. But she wasn't about to slap her father in the face by joining the NEXT Police, especially when she could tell that he wasn't ready to quit the day he called to say they were out of business. She wasn't about to let what happened to her father get in the way of what she wanted to do with her life either.

For her, doing this work and just life in general had always been about striking a balance, keeping both sides of the scale weighed as evenly as she could. She had to reconcile her passion with tactfulness, her gut with hard evidence, and now, her values with the law. So what if capital punishment became legal in Sternbild? Millennia ago, people legally owned other people as property. Centuries ago, her father's marriage to Barnaby would not have been legally recognized by the state. Legality didn't necessarily define justice. Just because something was illegal didn't make it wrong, and just because something was legal didn't make it right. Now, there was a chance that the state could legally carry out the atrocity of murder against human beings, framed innocents and even guilty people that Kaede liked to believe were still capable of being reformed. The fact of the matter was, once a life was taken, there was no bringing it back. Kaede knew this very personally. But there wasn't really anything she could do except vote against it.

She caught herself for a moment, moving out of the way before someone could accidentally bump into her. Scolding herself for being so careless, she hastened for the register with her cabbage and eggs. These were thoughts for another time and place. Wasn't going out supposed to take her away from her head anyway? Wasn't that why she went out in the first place? What was it she needed to do next again…?

Oh, yeah, she wanted to cut her hair.

"Just checking, but your girl's hair is dark brown, right?"

"Black, and it's got blue streaks." Ivan answered, tying back his long hair in the mirror.

"Ooh, you might want to do away with the highlights, Karelin."

"I thought he was going to strike next at a chic hair salon though? I'm just trying to blend in with the crowd."

"The perp was pretty particular, so make sure to match the description; otherwise this operation won't go well."

"Mrrh." Ivan sighed, shifting his disguise, muttering to himself, "sorry, Junko-san, guess your style wasn't good enough."

"Ugh, Karelin, for the last time, please don't name your disguises. The guy kidnapped and killed twelve women, so stop screwing around playing dress-up, alright? This is serious!"

"I know it's serious! I just gave her a name to get into character, alright? I don't want to compromise this operation." Ivan groaned, fixing his collar, before zipping up his purse and heading out of the restroom. "Don't worry. I'll catch him for sure."

Kaede often found herself in want of a haircut during trying times.

She cut her hair after breaking up with Yun, then when she found that she couldn't finish her degree in four years, then a week after misplacing her purse on the taxi, then finally after losing her dad. She'd cut her hair especially short at that time, and now a full year had caught up with her since then. The length of hair she willingly cast off may have returned, but it brought no comfort to her to know that the father she unwillingly accepted the death of could no longer be brought back. Haircuts were supposed to make her feel lighter, like a weight had been lifted from her shoulders so that she could move forward.

But that last haircut left her feeling empty and regretful, the feeling of her dad's hand in her hair carved into her tactile memory, him telling her that he was so proud of the kind of person she was growing up to be. And for a woman who'd disappointed herself over an overdue graduation, an abusive relationship, and carelessness when using public transportation, those words meant the world to her. They made her want to cry and come clean, tell Kotetsu all the reasons he was wrong to be proud of his daughter, but she knew it wouldn't have been any use. Because she was certain that he loved her too much to change his mind. Her dad had such a stubborn heart. To this day, she still wondered how on earth it ever gave out on him like that. He had so much love left to offer, right to the very end.

She couldn't help but wish he'd gotten more time to give the last of it to Barnaby too.

Upon closing the salon door behind her, her blood ran cold when she heard the cocking of a gun.

"Alright ladies, up against the wall!" A young man in a ski mask shouted, pointing the barrel around the room. Everyone froze up, too scared to move. Kaede could only put her hands up, a few others following suit. At this, he fired a shot at the ceiling, repeating himself. "Up against the wall now!"

With this, a number of people scrambled to the side of the room, the men and a few obstinate souls staying put, Kaede not included among them. Ensconced between two taller women, she tucked herself away from sight, reaching down to unzip her purse for the folding staff. This guy didn't look like a NEXT, but she couldn't be certain. It was better to be prepared and not take any risks. She watched as he shoved and prodded the stubborn people up to her side of the room, about ready to pounce and get out.

"Kaede. Don't move," Whispered one of her neighbors. Kaede nearly gave a start, horrified to find that she had been standing so close to a telepathic NEXT. How else would this stranger know her name?

Yet still, she bothered to ask, "How do you know my name?"

"It's me," he whispered, "Origami Cyclone, remember?" Oh, alright, she was half-wrong then, but still mortified to be standing so close to another NEXT.

"Ivan, right?" She faltered, hoping she hadn't forgotten his name. To her relief, he gave a very brief nod. Last time she saw him was the wedding, so it had definitely been awhile. But that seemed very beside the point. "What are you doing here?"

"Long story short, I'm here to apprehend that guy and any accomplices he may have at his side."

"…what… accomplices?" She said slowly, looking around the room tensely and seeing no other suspects. It occurred to her maybe there was a NEXT using a similar kind of camouflage ability like Ivan's, but for the sake of her sanity, she shook her head of the thought. When Ivan did not pose any immediate reply, she bit her lip, noticing the ski-masked man drawing near their end of the line. He paused upon a young lady with platinum blonde hair, grabbing a fistful her blouse before flinging her out of the line.

He barked, "Ugly tramp! Stay in the other corner!" On the verge of tears, she obeyed, trembling as she took her place on the opposite side of the room with the guys. Ivan watched her carefully, seeing that her back was turned towards the rest of the room as she hid herself in the crowd. She seemed to be rifling through her jacket pocket, but instantly, the perp turned back around, shouting, "Turn the fuck around and put your hands up!" Kaede gasped, noticing the blue glint in his eyes, as well as the glow surrounding him.

"Shit," She muttered to herself, realizing that maybe she'd been a little too loud, now that this guy's eyes were fixed on her. Kaede wanted to scream at the moment, but she bit her lip and forced herself to look down. With that, the guy snorted at her, dismissing her outburst and turning away. She could barely sigh in relief. That was really close.

"Careful now, we're in a delicate situation." Ivan scolded in a voice quiet enough to be Saito's without a mic. She could only nod at him with the most inaudible "Mm", trying to think of her next best possible course of action. Ivan must've held some specifics, like what this guy's power was, and why he was holding a hair salon of all places hostage, and who his accomplices were and what they were doing now.

Then before she knew it, Kaede couldn't move her feet or arms forward.

"Ivan…" she murmured cautiously, "can you move?"

"I can't," Kaede restrained another curse, lest she attempt to screw herself over again. "Okay, he's moving back towards the other end of the line. You're pretty short, right?" She nodded, waiting to see where he was going with this. "Alright, there's a sink behind us. If you can use whatever power you've got on right now to break the hold, I need you to duck under there and call in reinforcements for me. The code is 'Dinner later?'."

"Okay. What number do I call?"

Ivan drew a blank. Now it was his turn to bite back a curse, "I don't know." He then gestured with his eyes, "Alright, take my purse and the number should be under—dammit, he's coming back towards our end." Before he could finish, Kaede flashed blue and overpowered the hold, ducking under the sink. Ivan could only make a very low "ffffffffff-" sound, wanting to stomp his foot if he were able to.

She had five minutes.

Too hastily, she merely pressed the number one on her phone before hitting the call button. And only as the contact "Dad" flickered across the screen did she realize and hate herself for forgetting that the number zero was her speed dial for the police. Her head went into absolute panic mode, and she tried to hang up, but now of all times, her phone chose to glitch out on her. No matter how much she tapped at the screen, she could not end the call. When the screen cracked, Kaede closed her eyes and tried not to cry. If she wasn't fucked earlier, she was definitely, irreversibly fucked now.

She inhaled deeply, trying not to think of having the last thing her Dad gave her being stripped away in the blink of an eye, trying not to think of bleeding to a slow, painful death on the linoleum before finding closure over the fact that her father had or had not been murdered, trying not to think of Barnaby having to live the rest of his miserable, lonely life alone likely blaming himself for something out of his control. But those thoughts broke through anyhow, and they got to her. The last one especially hurt her because he was her family, her adolescent inspiration, her role model reaching through the magazines when she felt her dad was too far away to really care. He meant something to her, and he'd already been through so much bullshit in his life that the last thing she wanted for him now was to leave him without a family again.

As she exhaled, she heard a faint voice in the phone, one that was definitely too quiet to be her dad's voice mail. Shakily, she pressed the phone to her ear, throat closed up in anticipation and dread.

"Kaede? Why are you calling Kotetsu's phone? What happened?" She bit her lip carefully, eyes darting between Ivan and the other person she'd been standing next to earlier… no one in sight just yet.

"I'm hostage at the Whimsy Hair Salon. Send help."