The scream that tore through the dark night was filled with desperation, anguish, and above all else, fear. The sound of it filled Dr. Stein with terror, and he bolted out of his lab before its echo had died down. The second scream pushed him even faster, and he slammed the door to Chiyumi's room open, Soul Menace already gathered around his hands, eyes furiously looking for the enemy.

Chiyumi sat upright in the middle of the bed, her back arched at a painful angle, her head tilted as far back as possible. And she screamed again, tears cascading down her cheeks.

Stein couldn't match his wavelength to hers.

Soul Menace faded from his hands, as he moved swiftly to her side, wrapping his arms around her, afraid to wake her, but unwilling to let her remain in whatever dream she was trapped in.

He still couldn't match her wavelength.

Another scream, and he heard a wet popping sound only a second before he felt the blood from her torn stitches soak into his pants. He shook her, trying desperately to break her out of the dream.

But he still couldn't match her wavelength.

Pressing his hand to the popped stitches he tried to apply enough pressure to keep them from bleeding, but not so much that he hurt her. "Chiyumi. Calm down. Listen to me. I'm here. It's just a dream." He felt unexpected moisture on his cheeks.

And he still couldn't match her damn wavelength!

"Chiyumi!" He shouted at her, starting to panic.

"P-papa?" The voice was small, quiet, and wracked with pain. "Papa, it hurts!"

Stein's breath caught in his throat. Chiyumi's eyes were still clenched tightly shut, her head thrown back, her breathing coming in fits and starts.

"Papa, make it stop!" She cried, arching back into another scream.

And, finally, desperately, he matched her wavelength.

The difference was instantaneous. Chiyumi collapsed whimpering, Stein barely able to catch her before she fell. "It hurts, papa. It hurts..." She whispered, one hand moving to her side where the stitches had popped. Then she passed out.

Stein stared down at her. At the ragged tatters of the nightmare that hung on her soul. At the twisted reflection he had seen for a second.

And felt a tear run down his cheek for the pain he had seen.

Chiyumi woke up the next afternoon, tired and worn out, wanting nothing more than to go back to sleep. An emptiness seemed to fill her however, something different than just the everyday 'I'm awake and hungry' pain. She didn't want to move though, but she could hear someone breathing, slowly and deeply, very close to her.

Turning her head, she saw Dr. Stein asleep in his lab chair, right next to her bed, the knuckles of his right hand wrapped in a bandage. She also saw a hole in the wall at about the same height and position as the door knob would be when the door was fully opened. There were also fresh bandages wrapped around her waist, and blood on the bandages, the bed, and Stein's lab coat. Her blood, she realized with a shock.

'Did he experiment on me while I was asleep?' Chiyumi shook her head. 'No... he would have taken me to the lab to perform it and never been this careless if he had.' She gingerly touched her left side, cringing at the onslaught of pain it brought.

Starting to move she realized something odd. There was pressure on her right hand. Looking down at it, she suppressed a gasp. Stein's left hand that she hadn't seen just by turning her head was holding onto hers. The effect was... comforting.

Sighing, she carefully disentangled her hand from his, not wanting to wake him. She slowly stood, feeling the weakness in her knees, and only managed three wobbling steps before she had to stop and regain her balance. A few more steps, and she was breathing heavily, hand on her side, the pain almost unbearable.

"Chiyumi." She felt Stein's hands on her shoulders. "You shouldn't be up and moving around. You reopened your stitches last night. You have to rest." His voice sounded tired, if she didn't know him better she'd even say worried.

"I'm hungry. And bodily functions call again." She said, his hands the only thing keeping her from falling at that moment.

"I have a wheel chair, it'll make having to move around easier on you." He picked her up, bridal style, careful of her stitched side. "I'll get it while you go to the restroom, then I'll go and fix something for us to eat."

Stein carried her to the small restroom outside her room, and sat her down right outside it. "I'll be right here in a second, I'm just going to retreive the chair from downstairs." She gave a small nod.

'He's being so careful of me? What happened?'

"Dummy." A voice whispered in her head. "He doesn't care. He's just lulling you into a false sense of security."

'You're dead, Shiyu. Stay that way.'

"You're so mean to me... Chimi..."

Shaking her head Chiyumi finished and washed her hands, carefully. Then stepped out to find Professor Stein already waiting on her with the wheelchair.

"Professor?" She asked as she gingerly sat down in the chair.

"Yes, Chiyumi?"

"What happened? Where did the blood come from, how did I reopen my stitches?" She looked at him as he pushed her back into her room.

"You were having a nightmare. I heard you screaming and rushed in to find you sitting up in bed, your body contorting as you screamed about the pain. You ripped the stitches before I could calm you down." He was staring straight ahead as he spoke before coming around to help lift her out of the chair.

"What are you leaving out?"

"Nothing, really. Just that I had to restitch them and then decided to put a bandage over them as well. I'll need to check later for signs of infection." He didn't meet her eyes.

"You're lying."

"It's not important, Chiyumi."

"Tell me then."

"You... called me Papa." He looked up at her. "Hardly something important and I was going to spare you the embarrassment."

"I'm not embarrassed, Professor. Why should I be? You took me in when I was thirteen years old after my parents were killed in a home invasion and my sister died. I've lived with you for the last eight years. You're the closest thing I have to family. You certainly take care of me as well as my father would have."

Stein blinked. He then picked her up and placed her back into her bed. "Call if you need anything, I'll bring some food up shortly."

"Professor? Thank you."

He left the room.

"You're the closest thing I have to family." Professor Stein kept hearing that play over and over is in head as he prepared a simple meal of hot broth and noodles.

'Why?' He wondered to himself. 'Why would she say that? Of course she has family. It's highly unlikely that both of her parents were only children, and even more unlikely that her grandparents are already all dead. So why claim me as the closest thing she has left as family? It makes no sense..'

He was getting ready to take the tray of food up to Chiyumi when someone knocked on the door.

"Yes?" He asked coolly, the door open about halfway before he saw who it was.

"Spirit, what are you doing here?"

"Stein, you missed a very important meeting today by not coming to the DWMA."

"I let Sid know I wouldn't be able to make it."

"Stein. I don't think you understand how important this meeting was. Oceania's Death Scythe was in attendance."

"And? I can't stand that pig." Stein snarled and stepped aside so Spirit could enter.

"Not that one, Stein. Sit down."

"Why?"

"It's Marie."

A/N:
Duh, duh, duh! Told you it would be important later :)
I don't own soul eater /sigh
Review if you'd like!