Finally! I thought this episode would never be finished. Sorry for making this such a long chapter, I just didn't want Episode Nine to stretch out onto another chapter, so I made sure I got it all done here. Not too happy with it, but I am looking forwards to Episode Ten. Ten will be crazy, and I have a lot of fun stuff planned for it. It'll also be the last fun episode of Marchen, as the final two episodes will be pretty dark and serious.

Huge thanks to everyone for reviewing, you guys are awesariffic! You all keep me going. Please review more and feed my starving ego. Look forward to an update for Wizard of Oz next time, and I might have something new in the future as well. Until then, please enjoy!

Rozen Maiden: Märchen

EPISODE NINE

Crescendo

Pandora's Box was exactly the way it had been depicted in that doll history book. It was the same size and dimensions of a Rozen Maiden case, but made from ebony black wood, with silver highlights around the edges and a silver fleur-de-lis on the lid in place of a rose. There was more to it than that though ... a somewhat sinister air that surrounded the thing, a kind of intangible sense of deep uneasiness. It felt as if the Box was somehow distorting your perceptions when you looked at it, and if you looked at it for too long you would find it very difficult to look away.

"After all this time, here you are," Suigintou whispered. She knelt before the case and tentatively reached out to touch the lid with the tips of her fingers. Sure enough the thing was real and solid, yet it sent a shiver through Suigintou the second her fingers made contact with it. Why, she couldn't say. Was it perhaps its reputation, or something else? Either way she found it impossible to take her eyes off it, her gaze drawn inexorably into the perfect blackness of the case. And there was something more. Something ... familiar. A recognizable sensation that stirred a memory deep within her mind.

Can you not sense it? My Rosa Mystica. It calls to you...

Words spoken to Suigintou by her little sister Kirakishou the very first time they had ever met. The seventh doll had pulled her big sister's hand towards her and placed it against her chest so that Suigintou might sense her Rosa Mystica, and know for certain that she was a Rozen Maiden. But why? Why that memory? What did it mean?

"What are you doing?"

Suigintou started with surprise, her hands jumping away from the Box as if it had stung her. She turned to see the twins standing a short distance away, clutching ancient weathered logs in their arms. They were watching her, and for some absurd reason Suigintou felt as if she'd just been caught doing something embarrassing. She scowled and stood.

"Nothing," she answered dismissively, "Nothing at all."

Suiseiseki scoffed at her, her expression one of disbelief. "Yeah right. Why don't you admit it; you were so totally thinking of opening it, weren't you?"

Suigintou folded her arms and fixed her gaze on the far wall. "And if I was?"

"Pandora's Box might be the key to one of us becoming Alice," Souseiseki said, setting the log she was carrying down on the floor, "It might very well be that whichever one of us opens the Box..." she trailed off, letting the obvious end to that statement speak for itself. Suigintou stared at her.

"The thought had occurred to me," she said, "Whatever is the matter Souseiseki? Are you worried I might open it before you and be the one to finally become Alice?"

The Gardener doll shook her head solemnly. "No, that's not it. To be honest, I don't mind which one of us becomes Alice, just so long as one of us does."

Suigintou observed her carefully and was mildly surprised when she realized that Souseiseki genuinely meant what she said. Of course it wasn't that surprising, after all Souseiseki had always only been concerned with ensuring that Father was happy. She'd never had any other motive for playing or winning the Alice Game, unlike Suigintou herself. She glanced across at Suiseiseki, who set her own log down as well. "And what about you?" Suigintou gestured to the Box on the floor beside her, "Don't you want to open it, Suiseiseki?"

Suiseiseki stared at the black doll case for a long moment, thinking the question over. Throughout her entire life she'd never once considered that she might become Alice, because in the past doing so would have required her to fight her sisters and take their Rosa Mysticas, and she had no intention of doing that. But ... if the Box really was an alternative to the Alice Game, if it meant she could become Alice without having to fight her sisters, then ... would she?

"I ... umm ..." she floundered, unsure of herself. Then she noticed Souseiseki watching her and all thought of becoming Alice left her. Souseiseki was right, so long as one of them became Alice then Father would be happy. It didn't have to be her or Souseiseki, there were five other Rozen Maidens after all. She smiled at her twin and turned back to Suigintou with a firm set look in her mismatching eyes. "Well, not really. I mean I'd so be fine with you or one of our other sisters becoming Alice. Just so long as Souseiseki and I can be together, I'm happy."

"Why don't you open it then?" Souseiseki prompted her big sister. Suigintou's eyes widened slightly, astonished by what amounted to an offer from two of her sisters to go right ahead and become Alice. She regarded them both warily, her old nature making her somewhat suspicious.

"Really? And neither of you would mind? Even if opening it does allow me to become Alice?"

Souseiseki said nothing, whilst Suiseiseki merely shrugged "Sure," she said, "Why not? I mean it'd put an end to the Alice Game and make it so none of us ever have to fight one another again. You want to, don't you?"

Of course she did! But how could they so casually accept her becoming Alice? Her? Suigintou gazed at her two sisters in wonder, her hand clutched tightly to her chest. "After all I have done ... you really believe I am worthy of becoming Alice?"

"Yes," said Souseiseki matter-of-factly, "You're a Rozen Maiden, Suigintou, and you love Father as much as any of us. Maybe more. I can't think of any reason why you shouldn't become Alice."

Suigintou was speechless. She'd never expected to hear such kind words from her sisters. She'd been fighting them for so long, she sometimes forgot that these days she wasn't fighting them anymore. That they could say nice things to one another without being sarcastic or mocking. Their words meant a lot. She closed her eyes and bowed her head slightly, a faint smile playing across her face.

We all carry the radiance that makes us worthy of becoming Alice.

Shinku's words, words that had also meant a great deal to Suigintou. And now Suiseiseki and Souseiseki seemed to be saying the same. They at least seemed to think that she was worthy, but was she? If asked she would have scoffed and said that she was the only doll worthy of becoming Alice. But in her heart she knew that she had always desperately hoped that she was worthy, whilst simultaneously being afraid that she was not. Only when Father had brought her back and told her himself that she was did she start to let go of that fear and doubt, and still it lingered

Suigintou knelt before Pandora's Box, doing her best to ignore the strange, uneasy feelings it gave her. She laid her hands on the lid once more and prepared to open it.

"What's wrong?" Souseiseki asked, when, after a long delay she still had not tried to open it. Suigintou pulled her hands away and shook her head.

"I can't."

"Huh? Why not you big dolt?" asked Suiseiseki, confused by her inaction, "This is your big chance!"

Suigintou frowned. "Trust me Suiseiseki, I would like nothing more than to open it, but aren't we forgetting something?"

Suiseiseki didn't understand her, but her twin did. Souseiseki nodded once, catching her meaning. "Shinku, Kanaria and Hinaichigo."

"Yes," Suigintou got to her feet once more and sighed heavily, "We're all Rozen Maidens and we're all worthy of becoming Alice. I can't steal this opportunity away from them without first hearing what they have to say."

Suiseiseki gawped at her for a long moment before laughing and sticking her hands on her hips. "I swear, you've so completely changed, Suigintou. I never thought I would ever see the day where you turned down a chance to become Alice because you cared what your sisters thought."

"I know," said Suigintou, rubbing the side of her head as if she were just as surprised by this turn of events as Suiseiseki was, "I'm actually quite shocked at myself."

The fog was finally starting to clear and the rain had eased off somewhat. It was still raining, but not nearly as fierce as it had been. For that Kanaria was grateful. She was also hopelessly lost. She'd gone through the portal the others had created but had no idea where to go from there. The town she found herself in was vaguely familiar, but not enough for her to be able to navigate with any degree of reliability.

Without anything solid to go on she'd opted to make for the high ground and scope things out a little. The highest point in the town was the clock tower, and if you squinted up at it you might just be able to spot the little grey haired doll crouched under her parasol on the rooftop like the oddest gargoyle you'd ever laid eyes on.

"Wow, it's quite a view from up here, isn't it Pizzicato?" she said, addressing her glowing yellow artificial spirit. It hovered beside her and pulsed brightly as it answered her, prompting Kanaria to roll her eyes. "Yeah yeah, I won't fall. The rooftop might be slippery and wet but I'm much better at keeping my footing now, y'know."

She pulled out her binoculars and peered through them, scanning the desolate town for any sign of life that might indicate where her sisters and her father were. To think that boy had been Father! And he'd been living with her sisters for days and none of them had said anything to her. She was not only envious of them for that, but also extremely annoyed and not a little upset. Her sisters were always forgetting her. Sometimes it was funny, but sometimes it actually hurt. Being ignored and forgotten could be more painful even than being picked on. Really, if Kanaria didn't have Micchan, she'd be downright depressed.

"Ohhh, I can't see them anywhere!" she wailed. This place was depressing. It was cold and dark and miserable. In fact the town itself felt forgotten, ignored even. It was a lonely and lifeless place, save for the quite spectacular tree she'd noticed upon her arrival here. Kanaria sighed wearily as she lowered her binoculars. What if she couldn't find them? Father might leave before she had a chance to see him again and apologise.

"Huh?" she glanced across as she noticed Pizzicato zip back and forth frantically, trying to get her attention. "What is it, Pizzicato? Have you spotted them?" She raised her binoculars once more and pointed them at her artificial spirit. Once it was sure she was looking it moved aside, and she found herself observing a large estate at the edge of the town. Seeing it gave her a peculiar feeling of deja-vu, and she soon realized why.

"That's ... that's home! Home, Pizzicato, home! That's where Father made Kana and her sisters. I haven't been there since ... well, a really really long time ago, y'know?"

Just seeing it brought back memories and made her feel terribly homesick and nostalgic. She had some good memories of that place. Father had never ignored her or forgotten her name, at least not during the brief time she'd spent with him there. She really missed him and didn't want to lose an opportunity to see him again.

"Wait, what's that?" she wondered aloud. She adjusted the focus on her binoculars and was alarmed to see an ominous black car pull up on the side of the road closest the house. Two men got out, shoulders hunched against the rainfall, and Kanaria didn't like the look of them one bit. As she fiddled with the focus she caught a glimpse of a pistol in one of their hands and let out a short gasp.

"That doesn't look good, does it Pizzicato?" Kanaria said as she lowered the binoculars, "Two suspicious characters with guns heading for my home ... not good at all." She stood upright, intending to strike a dramatic pose on the roof of the clocktower, when instead her foot slipped out from under her and she wobbled dangerously. She had a brief moment with which to curse her ill luck before gravity did its thing and sent her plummeting to the street far below.

"Whatever is the matter?" Shinku asked Jun. She and all the others were watching Rozen, who was currently fiddling with that complex Timepiece thing he had. He was also holding an odd sort of conversation with the thing and seemed to be extremely puzzled.

"What?" he said, addressing the object in his hand, "That doesn't make any sense! I wound it back up, it shouldn't be doing that!" he cursed and shook the Timepiece out of frustration. Jun frowned and rubbed the back of his neck.

"Uh, Rozen? What seems to be the problem?"

Rozen scowled and glanced up at him. "I have no clue! According to Holie the Timepiece is counting down, and when it's finished it's going to return to my time. But I never started any countdown!" He glanced back at it and groaned. "It shouldn't be doing this."

"May I, Father?" Shinku approached and extended a hand. He passed the Timepiece to her and she examined it intently for several long seconds. Finally she held it up. "Come now Holie, explain yourself this instant," she commanded. The past version of her artificial spirit was inside the Timepiece, apparently a key component to making the device function. Shinku frowned as she listened to its explanation. "I see," she said.

"What? Did it say what was wrong?" Rozen asked. Shinku nodded and handed the Timepiece back.

"Yes. Apparently an outside force is calling it back to its own time. Holie says you must return now or you will be trapped here in this time."

"Outside source?" Rozen wondered aloud, "What could that be?"

"Who knows," said Jun, extending his hands as if to say that it wasn't really important, "Either way you don't want to miss your ride back. If you get stuck in this time then you wont be able to make the Rozen Maidens in the first place."

This drew a series of startled looks from several of the dolls, who fully understood the implications of it. Suiseiseki in particular was wide-eyed with panic. "B-but that would mean we wouldn't exist anymore!" she bawled, her hands bunched together tightly against her chest, "That is so not good! I really like existing!"

Rozen hung his head in resignation and sighed, his previous irritation gone. "I guess this means I have to go, then. Pity, I was having a good time with all you guys."

The room fell silent as the dolls realized the implications of this. Their father was going to have to leave them now. For hundreds of years he'd been apart from them and all they'd wanted was to be with him again. And now, in a way, they sort of had. And it had been fun. But it couldn't last, they all knew that. Deep down they knew that he would have to leave sooner or later. They'd all just sort of hoped it would be later.

"Do you really have to go, Father?" Souseiseki asked softly. It was a question she already knew the answer to, but she had to ask it anyway. Rozen tucked the Timepiece away and nodded.

"It looks that way. I wish I didn't have to. I wish so much that I didn't have to go," he said, his voice tinged with a mix of frustration and sadness, "But I guess I..." he trailed off, and a moment later Shinku picked up for him.

"You must return to your time and grow up to be the father we all know and love," she finished for him, "We knew that this moment would come, and now it has. I believe I speak for all of us, Father, when I say ... thank you."

Jun was amazed to see that the dolls were tearing up, even Suigintou. He couldn't really blame them though, he'd been the same way when his parents had left. They had sat him and Nori down one day and told them both that they were going away to work overseas, and would be gone for a very long time. Jun had shut himself in his room and cried until he ran out of tears, and he knew Nori had been the same. In some ways he was a lot like the dolls. He knew what it was like to be separated from one's parents for a long time, to rely on a sister for support and company. He didn't envy them this moment.

Rozen knelt before the twins and smiled at them both. They were holding on to one another for comfort, and were less than thrilled with the prospect of losing their father once again. "Listen," he spoke softly to them, "I know how much the two of you care about each other-"

"We care about you too, Father!" Souseiseki assured him. He chuckled and grinned at her.

"Thank you. That means a lot, Souseiseki. But what I'm trying to say is ... if the two of you want to be together, then that's fine by me," he said, sparing a coy glance for Jun, as if daring him to say something, "The fact that you love each other so much makes me happy. And Souseiseki?"

"Yes Father?"

Rozen leaned over and whispered into her ear so that only she could hear; "Put your own happiness before mine."

Souseiseki's eyes widened at his words, and he pulled back from the twins while Suiseiseki stared at her, curious as to what Rozen had said. Rozen turned now to Suigintou, who looked as if she were sulking. She sat on the edge of a nearby chair, hands clasped around her knees and a deep scowl upon her face. Rozen plonked himself down in the chair, grabbed a hold of her and sat her on his lap.

"Stop scowling so much Suigintou," he instructed with a playful voice, "You're so much prettier when you smile, you know."

Needless to say this did wipe the scowl off her face and replaced it with a luminescent blush. Rozen squeezed her tight and pressed the side of his face against hers. "I love you, Suigintou," he said with absolute sincerity, "Never ever doubt that. You're my little angel." He lowered his voice to a whisper once more and added; "I think I know why I left you incomplete. I think it was because I never wanted you to fight in the Alice Game, never wanted to see you hurt. But by doing that I hurt you myself. I'm sorry, Suigintou."

Jun and the dolls were startled by the expression on Suigintou's face as Rozen got up and gently set her down, and they all had to wonder at what he had said to her to provoke such a reaction.

Now it was Shinku's turn. She steeled herself as her father knelt before her and reached out towards her. He removed her pocket watch and held it open before her. They both watched the second hand tick by, acutely aware that each movement cut short the time Rozen had left. Rozen turned his attention back to Shinku and pressed the watch into her tiny hands, enveloping them in his own. "Time is precious, time is fleeting," he said with all seriousness, "Time is also your specialty, Shinku. Spend your time wisely, because I think time is running out. And not just for me."

Shinku said nothing, not understanding his meaning but unable to find her voice to ask him to explain. As with the others, Rozen leaned close to whisper something personal to Shinku, but this time he hesitated. He hesitated long enough that Shinku was about to try and ask if there was anything wrong, but he spoke before she could. His voice was hushed and she thought he sounded pained by something.

He said; "Shinku ... if I could choose any Rozen Maiden to become Alice, I would choose you."

Shinku had never been so shocked in her entire life, and seeing as her entire life stretched across several centuries, that was saying a lot. This was the only occasion she'd ever had cause to doubt her own ears, the only time she couldn't believe the words spoken to her. She stared directly ahead, unseeing and unblinking, whilst Rozen stood and approached Jun. Before he could speak, Jun jabbed a thumb over his shoulder.

"Aren't you going to say goodbye to your sister?" he asked. Rozen gave a short, humorless laugh and shook his head.

"Ada still hasn't forgiven me for abandoning her. I don't blame her, I still haven't forgiven myself either, and I haven't even done it yet. I'll ... try to make it up to her in my own time."

"Well," Jun gave a half shrug, at a loss for what to say, "I guess this is it then."

"I guess so."

"It's been .." Jun searched around for the appropriate word to describe the events following Rozen's abrupt appearance in his living room that night, "Weird," he settled on, "Very weird."

Whilst Jun clearly felt awkward saying goodbye, Rozen clearly didn't. He grinned widely and threw his arms around Jun in a hug, which caused Jun to turn a vivid shade of red. Jun wasn't sure if he should hug him back, but decided against it when he saw Suiseiseki smirking at him. Rozen squeezed him once and then pulled away, much to Jun's immense relief.

"Thank you, Jun."

"What for?"

Rozen lowered his gaze slightly, though continued smiling. "For taking care of my daughters when I couldn't. You took them in, gave them a place to stay-"

"Made them tea, opened doors for them, carried them around," Jun added helpfully, ticking points off on his fingers as he listed them, "I deserve a medal just for putting up with them, you know - OW!" Jun winced and clutched at his much-abused shin, which had just received yet another kick from Suiseiseki. She stuck her hands on her hips and glared at him.

"As if!" she snapped, "If anything we deserve a medal for having to cope with such a lazy no-good slacker!"

"You see what I have to put up with?" Jun gestured frantically at the little doll, but Rozen only sniggered.

"Admit it Jun, even though you argue with them you love them as much as I do," Rozen insisted. Jun gaped at him for a moment before crossing his arms and looking away in a huff.

"Like hell I do," he muttered, "Lousy obnoxious violent creepy little dolls."

Rozen giggled and nodded in full agreement. "Yup, that's my daughters." He leaned forwards and planted a kiss on Jun's cheek, which very nearly caused Jun to faint from shock. It very nearly caused the dolls to faint as well. "Give my love to the others who couldn't be here," he added. Before Jun could answer they all heard the sound of Holie pulsing inside the Timepiece Rozen had in his pocket. He pulled it out and checked it. "This is it," he said, taking a deep breath, "time's up, I gotta go."

There was a chorus of goodbyes and farewells from the dolls, and more than a few damp eyes. Rozen stood in the middle of the room and waved to his daughters, some of them waving back. Then he fixed his glittering green eyes on Jun and smirked, raising two fingers to his head as if in a kind of salute.

"Be seeing you," he said, and then vanished.

Ada was waiting for them all in the main hallway, arms crossed, face glowering. She noticed Pandora's Box clutched in Jun's hands and also noticed the absence of her brother. "So," she said shortly, "he's gone. Again."

"C'mon, don't be so hard on him," Jun urged her, "He's not such a bad person you know," and Jun found that he actually meant what he said. Sure, Rozen was crazy as hell, and seriously embarrassing to be around for any length of time, but he was good. Still, he couldn't blame Ada for feeling the way she did.

Whether or not she believed him the couldn't say. She exhaled sharply and turned to her right, staring sullenly at the main staircase. "If you want my advice, find the deepest, darkest hole you can and throw the case into it. No good will ever come of it."

Before Jun could ask what she meant by that the front doors burst open and two men stormed in. They did not look happy, at least until they saw Jun and the case he was carrying. One of them, the smaller of the two, grinned like a shark that had caught the scent of its next meal and brandished a handgun at Jun.

"Well what'dya know, the boss was right after all," he said, "This job isn't going to be nearly as much trouble as I figured."

Ada rounded on the two strangers and stamped her foot, her hands clenched at her sides. "How dare you!" she yelled at them, "How dare you barge into my home uninvited, tracking your wet feet across my carpet!"

The smaller man with the facial tattoo sneered and turned his gun on Ada now. "I hate kids nearly as much as I hate dolls. Another word out of you, princess, and I might be tempted to put you to sleep. Permanently."

"We only came for the Box," the big guy said, speaking for the first time. He extended his hand towards Jun, "Hand it over and no one needs to get hurt."

Jun backed away, clutching the case tightly. "Uhh, guys..."

Suigintou floated up into the air, her black wings expanding as she readied an attack. She eyed the two intruders with a dangerous glint and flexed her hands. "Oh look sisters, a pair of stupid humans have come to play with us. Shall I make the opening move?"

"You gotta be kidding me," said Max, "A flying doll?" He brought his gun around and fired a shot off at Suigintou. The white haired doll darted to the side, causing the bullet to burry itself in the far wall. She retaliated by unleashing a swarm of needle-sharp feathers at her attacker, which by all rights ought to turn him into a human pincushion.

They ought to have, but they didn't. A ring on his finger glowed with a greyish white light and instead of perforating him, the feathers struck a barrier and scattered, leaving him unharmed. Souseiseki brandished her shears and leapt at Sam. The big guy simply waited for the blow to connect, and didn't even flinch as the blades of the shears came within a foot of his face. They came no further though, striking a barrier just as Suigintou's attack had. She rebounded off the shield and landed on the ground a few feet back.

"Oh crap," said Jun, summing up the situation nicely. Sam frowned and strode towards him, not even bothering to raise his gun.

"We're not playing around; give me the Box now or things will go very badly for you."

Jun didn't even try to resist. The dolls attacks seemed to be useless, and if he tried to run he didn't think he'd get halfway to the nearest door before he wound up with a bullet in the back. Gulping, he thrust the black case out before him and backed away as soon as Sam snatched it. He turned to Max and presented the Box, holding it effortlessly in one hand.

"I've got it, let's get out of here."

Max shook his head. "Open it first, make sure it's the real deal. I don't wanna give the boss another fake."

"Why aren't our attacks working?" Suigintou hissed, keeping her distance from the intruders whilst trying to think of some strategy.

"It would appear they are protected," Shinku answered, staring fixedly at the rings each of the men were wearing. They were similar to a Medium's ring, except these two humans didn't have a doll of their own with them. Yet they did not seem surprised to see the Rozen Maidens, and had come for Pandora's Box. Very curious.

"It's locked," announced Sam, unable to prise the thing open. He lowered the Box and turned back to Jun, "Where's the key?"

"Key?" Jun gaped at him, bewildered. Rozen had said nothing about a key. Max growled and pointed his gun at the frightened boy.

"Come on kid, don't mess us around! Give us the damn key!"

"We were unaware that the case was locked," said Shinku, her voice perfectly level and calm, "We only found it moments before you arrived."

"You believe that?" said Sam, glancing over at his partner. Jun knew his answer even before he spat it out.

"Hell no," Max cocked the hammer of his pistol, which was unnecessary but succeeded in moving Jun from terrified into ohgodImgonnadie levels of fear. He held up his hands in a purely futile defensive gesture while Max took a step towards him. "Here's what I'm gonna do kid; I'm gonna count to five. If you don't hand over the key by the time I reach five..."

"Guess," Sam finished for him. Jun gulped again. He had the worst luck ever.

"One."

"I don't know what you're talking about!"

"Two."

"I swear I didn't know it was locked!"

"Three. Not buying it, kid."

"If I had the key, I'd give you the damn key!"

"Four."

"I DON'T HAVE IT!"

"Five," Max fired. The bullet tore from the muzzle of the gun at speeds so great the human eye couldn't even perceive it, and it would have tore through Jun Sakurada's skull and brains quite easily if, at that precise moment, Ada hadn't shoved him out of the way. The bullet hit her instead, shattering her head into a thousand fragments as if it had simply exploded.

Jun fell to the ground, dazed by what had just happened, and it was possible his life was flashing before his eyes at a speed even greater than the bullet which had very nearly killed him. Ada's now lifeless form crumpled to the ground beside him and he stared at her in horror. Max meanwhile jerked around to look over his shoulder, astonished that Ada had managed to sneak around from behind him to reach Jun without him even noticing. Then he turned back and realized that what he'd shot wasn't even human.

"A doll!" he shouted, his ears still ringing from the gunshot, "She wasn't a kid, she was a goddamned doll!"

The Rozen Maidens, incensed by the destruction of Ada, began a new assault against the two violent intruders. This went about as well as the first assault, and when Sam and Max opened fire on them they were forced to dive for cover, cursing at their inability to land a single blow. Max swore and advanced on Jun, who was still lying on the floor.

"I hate dolls!" he snarled, "It's like trying to freakin shoot Yoda!" He raised his gun and pointed it at Jun's head once again, only now he was close enough for Jun to see down the barrel of the thing. He stared at it, unable to look away, while Max snapped angrily at him. "Give me the key, kid, or I'll start counting again. Only this time I'll just count to one. You catch my meaning?"

"Hey, ease off a little," Sam urged him, his own weapon at the ready to discourage any further attacks from the dolls. Max ignored him and shoved the muzzle of his gun against Jun's forehead, prompting Jun to cry out, tears welling up in his eyes.

"One!" Max yelled. He never got the chance to pull the trigger however, because at that moment there was a strange sound. It was the sound of a chord being played, and accompanying that chord was a powerful blast of air that struck Max and flung him across the hall. All eyes now turned on the source of the blast.

It was Kanaria.

"Looks like I arrived just in the nick of time, doesn't it?" she said smugly. In one hand she was holding her violin, and in the other her parasol, which was unfolded and leaning against her shoulder. She chuckled. "I guess that makes me the hero, doesn't it?"

Sam didn't hesitate; he aimed and fired, six shots directly at the smiling musical doll. Kanaria responded by lowering her parasol like a shield, and the bullets thudded into it. As the tinkle of spent cases hitting the floor faded away, Kanaria rolled her parasol to one side and giggled. "Oh please, it would take far more firepower than a handful of puny 9mm parabellum rounds to slow the great Kanaria down. Now then," she dropped her parasol to the floor and produced her violin bow, "Let me show you how I argue with the barrel of a gun."

Max had managed to stagger to his feet and joined Sam in staring at the little grey haired doll as she began playing on her violin. Jun somehow found himself on his feet too and wisely decided to join Shinku behind cover, knowing full well what was coming next.

"Second movement - crescendo of baroque!" Kanaria played, and as the music filled the air it caused the air itself to react, whipping into a frenzy and filling the hallway with a howling gale. Sam and Max both raised their hands to shield their faces, but they might as well have tried to hold back a hurricane for all the good it did. In less than a few seconds they were both hit by a solid wall of screaming wind that lifted them off their feet and sent them flying through the open doorway.

They hit the ground outside quite painfully, and still Kanaria did not relent. She advanced up to the doorway herself, raising the tempo of her music. Sam and Max went tumbling head over heel away from the house, blown about by the kind of wind that could imbed a blade of grass into a tree. Only when they were far enough away was Kanaria satisfied, and ceased playing. She waved her instrument and shouted after them.

"AND DON'T EVER COME BACK Y'HEAR!"

As the two hired thugs scrambled for their car, Kanaria turned back to face the others. The hallway was a complete wreck, having been shot up and blasted by gales. Jun and the others emerged from whatever hiding places they'd been able to find and stared at her. Jun in particular was feeling shell-shocked given everything that had just happened. Kanaria however seemed unperturbed.

"You're quite welcome," she said, as if wondering what all the fuss was. Jun sank to his knees and wrapped his arms around himself, shaking, whilst Shinku approached the unmoving form of Ada and regarded her sadly. Kanaria looked from one person to the other, taking note of their sour expressions. "What's wrong? I drove them away didn't I?"

"Yes, but they have the Box," observed Souseiseki. And she was quite right. Despite being thrown about like a leaf, Sam had managed to hold onto Pandora's Box the entire time thanks to a combination of extreme strength and extreme fear of what his boss would do to him if he lost the thing. In the end, it'd all been for nothing. Their father had crossed time itself to give them the Box, and mere minutes after he'd gone they had lost it.

In the space of about five minutes they had in fact lost their father, their aunt, and quite possibly the only alternative to the Alice Game. A lot can happen in five minutes. The whole world can be turned upside down.

Tomoe: Good morning Sakurada. Pandora's Box, the McGuffin you spent the last several episodes pursuing, is now in the hands of a German doll collector named Eike Grimm. Grimm plans to auction the Box to other collectors in the hopes of luring the person who has the key into a trap. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to infiltrate the auction and get Pandora's Box back. As always should you or any of your dolls be caught or killed, your parents will disavow any knowledge of your actions. This preview will self-destruct in five seconds. Good luck, Jun.