Disclaimer: Tekken does not belong to me…

3 Months Later

Does the rain ever stop around here?

Julia was lying on the plush red sofa that was under the main window of the room. For the last three months it had seemed to Julia that the weather matched her mood. Dark and depressed; full of melancholic misery.

I want to get out of here! I don't want to be here! A warm tear slid down her cheek. Followed shortly by another. Then without notice, Julia started sobbing. Her whole body began to shake and she pulled her legs up to her chest as best she could. At that precise moment, the large double doors on the opposite side of the room opened, and a hooded demon entered.

"Crying again, Julia?" Jaez asked as she closed the doors and walked to the other side of the room, where Julia lay huddled.

"I can't help myself," her voice broke.

Sighing, Jaez shook her head disapprovingly, "That does no good to either you or your babies."

"But I'm scared Jaez. I don't want anything to happen to my babies," more tears ran down her cheeks in miniature streams and she wrapped her arms around her swollen belly.

"Julia. I've already told you. Nothing is going to happen to them. I'm not going to allow it." Jaez insisted. Julia didn't respond and instead turned her head to gaze out the glass panes of the window and stared at the gray skies. Ever since she had discovered that she was going to have twins, Julia had become more anxious. She had yet another life to look out for now.

----Flashback----

At first she had thought Jaez' question silly. She had asked whether Julia had ever had any heart problems.

"Heart problems?" Julia repeated, "Have I ever had any heart problems?"

"Yeah. Like heart murmurs or something."

"Uh..No. Why?" Julia was now utterly confused.

"Well…it sounds like there's something wrong with your heart," Jaez hesitantly spoke.

Julia sat stunned and speechless. She opened her mouth to speak but she couldn't make her vocal cords form any words. After several moments of silence, Julia managed to let a few words tumble from her lips, "Why…Why do you think that?"

"For an odd reason I hear an strange fluctuation in heartbeats. There is no ordered synchronization. They seem kind of sporadic," Jaez frowned in concern.

"Sp-sporadic? Are-are you sure you're not just hearing my heartbeats and my baby's heartbeats at the same time? I doubt that they are going at the same rate," Julia tried to reason, "That would account for the fact that you hear a jumble."

Jaez shook her head, "I don't think so. I can differentiate between them. I hear you baby's heart and I hear yours. Unless there is something wrong with the baby's heart…yours is the one that's going crazy."

"No," Julia's voice cracked, "Ther-there's nothing wrong with my baby's heart. O-Or mine. Maybe you should get your hearing ch-checked Jaez," Julia gulped and a look of fear crossed her face.

Seeing the terrified expression that had settled on Julia's face, Jaez said, "My hearing is better than most demons' Julia, I think I know what I'm talking about. But you know what? Let me listen again, maybe I was accidentally hearing Obsidian's heart too," Julia nodded anxiously, "Don't say anything and try to calm down."

Jaez turned her head to the side so she could hear more clearly and then closed her eyes to focus her mind on differentiating the steady rhythms. After a few moments Jaez' head snapped up and she had a startled look on her face.

Julia stiffened at her expression, "Jaez?"

"I don't believe it," Jaez' eyes were opened wide and staring blankly at the wall.

"Jaez? What is it? What's wrong?" Julia grabbed at Jaez' arm and tried to make her turn toward her.

"Nothing."

"Huh? What do you mean by 'nothing' Jaez?"

She turned to Julia with a look of fascination lingering in her eyes, "There's nothing wrong with your hearts. It's just that…I wasn't expecting that." Julia looked more confused than ever, "I didn't hear just two sets Julia. I heard three."

"Three? What does that mean?"

"You're having twins Julia."

----End of Flashback----

"Get me out of here Jaez. Please," Julia whined, "I want to go home. I…I want to see Jin again. I…I want to tell him that he's going to be a dad,"

Jaez' kind eyes showed her understanding, "I know Julia, but I can't risk whisking you out. There are too many demons here. I can't take them all on, even with my additional capabilities. I'm sorry…We have to wait for a chance later down the line." She put a hand on Julia's shoulder, squeezed gently and then turned to leave. As she saw Jaez walk down the room, Julia couldn't help but let a few more tears escape her eyes.

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After grabbing the half-gallon container of chocolate ice cream out of the freezer, Verity walked back around the counter and let herself drop onto the couch. She opened it, and then dug in, letting the icy delicacy slide down her throat, cooling her from the inside out. A moment later, she yelped as a sudden pang of pain stuck her behind the eye. She let go of her spoon and put her hand to her eye.

"Damned…brain…freeze!" she whispered as the pain gradually subsided, "UGH! I can't even eat ice-cream in peace!" Not caring that the ice cream would probably give her another reminder that it should not be eaten quickly, Verity picked up the spoon and again began to eat.

After eating a good portion of the ice cream, Verity put the lid back on and set the tub on the new coffee table. Taking in a deep breath then letting it out slowly, she looked around the living room. The cream-colored walls were supposed to be inviting, but to Verity they seemed cold and distant, as if somehow they knew they were witnesses to the tragedy that had occurred here three months ago.

"Where are you Julia?" Verity whispered as she gazed at the photograph that sat above the mantle of the electric fireplace on the far side of the room. It was a photo of Julia and Verity right before they had left for the Amazon.

After Julia had been kidnapped, an all-out investigation had been put into effect. Despite the efforts of even the FBI, not a single lead had been uncovered for them to follow. The authorities thought it was impossible. No one could figure out how Julia had been kidnapped. There was no evidence of breaking-and-entering, and although everything had been trashed, not a single stray fiber of clothing or hair had been found. Julia's blood indicated a struggle, but there was nothing to identify her attacker. Absolutely. Nothing.

A few weeks later, the police had said that there was little hope for finding Julia. The landlady didn't know what to do with all of Julia's stuff. She didn't want to get rid of it all. Clues leading to Julia's safe return could arise, but until then…there was no one to pay the monthly rent and bills and she was hard pressed for money. Verity had asked if she could move in until Julia returned. She promised to pay the rent and everything else. The landlady eagerly agreed. Verity moved in and asked her brother to keep an eye on her own apartment.

Verity turned away from the photograph and turned on the television. As she flipped through the channels she came across one that caught her attention. It was the Discovery Channel. The program that was on today was about the Amazon Rainforest. Verity's eyes widened and her jaw dropped as an idea came to her mind.

"Oh my God! I am such and idiot! Why didn't I think of this before!?" Verity stood up suddenly, "If the police can't do shit…why do I keep waiting for them to pull some bunny out of a magical hat?"

She ran to the phone and called the airport, "Hello, I'd like to buy a ticket to La Paz, Bolivia. I need the next flight out."

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Next Chapter: "Encounter"