A/N: Hey people! Just before I forget again, for those who don't know, "Utsukushi-sa" mean "beauty" in japanese. And, I call the characters by their first names because to me, their first names sound better than their last names. And also, I read the manga before I saw the anime, and in the english translation of the books, they called each other by their first names. Also, I call Daisuke's rabbit Wiz instead of With b/c that's how it is in the manga, and to me, Wiz just sounds cuter! That's all I have to say for now, ENJOY!

Chapter 4: The Past

Daisuke's POV:

I walked into the classroom that morning, and saw Takeshi come up to me, apperently in a hurry like always.

"Hey Daisuke, did you hear the big news last night?" He asked me, a big smile on his face.

"No, what news are you talking about?" I asked, and really hoped that this news wouldn't be anything to do with...

"It's Phantom Dark!" He exclaimed, Of course Takeshi would have to bring that up, I thought to myself. "He failed Daisuke! He got tricked by the owner of that art museum! Man would I of loved to see the look on his face when he found out that it was a counterfit, that would of been totally priceless!" He kept saying, and started to laugh, little did he know that Dark was listening to him.

"I HAVE NOT FAILED! I WILL STEAL THAT STUPID ARTPIECE TONIGHT, JUST YOU SEE!" He was screaming as loud as he possibly could, as if hoping that someone else besides me could hear him. But then I looked over at Shizuku's desk, and felt a little bad. She was reading a book, keeping silent, just like always.

"Hey Daisuke, what's the matter? Shizuku's been like that from day one, and you know it." Dark said, his voice softening a little bit when he sensed my concern.

"Yeah, that's actually what's been bugging me actually... It seems that Riku and I are her only friends, and she's not even trying to make any others." I said to him.

"Well, if that's the way that Shizuku wants to go about the matter, then there's not much you can really do about it Daisuke, you just have to accept that you can't always help people who don't want to be helped." He said, I knew deep down he was right, but that wasn't enough to discourage me from helping her.

"Hey, Shizuku," I said to her, and she looked up from the book she had been reading.

"H-Hi Daisuke, something wrong?" She asked, a large smile emerged on her face as she spoke.

"No, uh, I was just wondering... What did you think of the event with Dark last night?" I blurted out, honestly, I didn't know why, of all the things in the world, I had to choose that particular topic.

"Well, all I can really say is that I didn't really expect Phantom Dark to fall for something like that..." She said in her usual low voice, looking right at me. "I mean, from what I have heard so far he is a professional, but then again, I could have been mistaken."

"But he is a professional Shizuku, don't you think it's not the tiniest bit strange?" I said, just desperatly trying to have a conversation with her, there wasn't all that much that she talked about, if she did talk at all.

"I-I suppose so, but I choose not to think about it all that much, after all, it's not really my place to speak out since I don't really know all that much about the topic." But after she finished speaking, she looked back down at her book, just like always when I tried to start a conversation, but failed.

"What did I tell ya Daisuke? If she wants to be a loner, it can't be helped... Although, she does make it look cute." Dark said, and I could practicly feel the smirk on his face creep up on my own, one of the worst things of sharing a body with such a playboy.

"Come on Dark, stop that. I just think that maybe, Shizuku is a loner because she's... lonely. I mean, she moves all the time, she barely has any friends, and it seems that her father always seems to be working..." I said, which I assumed was true considering what Shizuku had told me before.

"Hey Shizuku!" I turned around to see Risa standing behind me, holding something in her hand.

"H-Hello Risa, is there anything I can do for you?" She asked, this time, she marked the page of the book she was on, and placed it in her bag.

"Actually, I was wondering if you could answer me something, see began, and then revealed what she had been holding in her hand. Looking closer, I saw that it was some sort of magazine, I couldn't read it though, because it was in another language, probably English. But really got my attention was the woman on the cover, by just looking at her, I thought that she was some kind of model, looking like she was maybe in her 20's. She had pirecing, crystal blue eyes, and long, curly hair a couple of inches above her waist which was mainly a dark brown, but you could see the color becoming lighter in some places. Hey she looks a lot like...

"Shizuku, I can't really read what this magazine says, because I can't read English, but I saw it and I was wondering... By any chance, could this be you?" She asked her, excitement in her eyes.

Shizuku started to giggle a tiny bit, which I had never heard her do before. "A-Actually, Risa, that is not me on the cover." She said, her eyes still on the magazine.

"B-But this lady looks just like you," Risa said, this time she was the one stuttering instead of Shizuku.

"The reason she looks like me, is because that was my mother." She said, "That magazine is actually a good number of years old, you can tell by the date on the top." And then she pointed to one of the top corners of the magazine, where the unfamiliar letters were.

Now that I thought about it, Shikuzu had never mentioned her mom before, and I was starting to wonder why. When I was about to open my mouth to ask, something stopped me, or someone.

"I wouldn't open your mouth Daisuke, think about it for a second. Maybe there is a reason that she doesn't want to talk about her mother, for all you know, her mother could be dead, or perhaps her parents are divorced. How would you plan to get yourself out of that mess if her response is like that?" Dark asked me, and to be honest, I hadn't thought of that at all.

Then, Risa handed the magazine to Shizuku, but Shizuku didn't seem to understand. "Take it, I can't read it anyway, and I think that it seems a little more important to you." Risa said, smiling at her as Shizuku took the magazine from her.

She looked at it for a moment, before replying, "Thank you so much." To Risa, who just walked away, and went to talk to a group of her friends.

Then Shizuku started to flip through the magazine, until she found the article she was looking for. Looking at it from over her shoulder, I saw it contained various pictures of the same woman on the cover. She was beautiful, and looked a lot like Shizuku.

"You look a lot like her you know," I said, by the look on her face, I could tell that the smile she was showing me was forced. My instints told me that it looked like she was fighting back tears, but didn't wnat to show it.

"Daisuke's right ya know, you really are the spitting image of her." I turned around to see that Riku was standing behind me, trying to cheer up Shizuku.

"S-Sorry if I look kind of depressed right now, please try to ignore it, because it is nothing." She said, and looked away. As if refusing our help and gestures on purpose.

"Shizuku, why don't the three of us go somewhere, just to talk, okay?" Riku said, placing a hand on Shizuku's shoulder as she stood up to leave.

She looked at Riku for a minute, but finally said that she couldn't. "Y-You see, Satoshi is out sick today, and since he only lives a couple of blocks away from me, the teacher asked me to bring him his homework, so I can't. But next time I will, I promise." Was the last thing she said before she rushed out of the room, leaving the two of us alone.

"I'm worried about her Daisuke, she seems so closed off to other people, and, I just don't know. But, I am gonna keep trying to be her friend, because I really think that she needs one right now." Riku said to me, she had that look of determination in her eyes, the one that I had always loved.

"I'm gonna keep trying too, Riku. I think that if we give it enough time, she'll eventually open up." I said, trying to look as confident as I felt. Because I knew that Shizuku was a great girl, and I really wanted to get to know the real her.

Satoshi's POV:

Honestly, I wasn't sick or anything today, I just didn't want to go to school today. Actually, that morning, I did have to speak to my father about something. Dark had sent out another warning notice saying that this time, he would steal the real "Eternal Timepiece". But since the owner, who of which I still don't know the name of, refused to tell anyone where they were keeping it, there was not much that I could do. And by the time we were done discussing this matter, I would of already of been late to school, so what would of been the point?

For some reason, I couldn't help but think about last night, when Dark was actually fooled by that counterfit. The thought of him being fooled like that made me smirk, but then I remembered that it had me fooled as well. Just like everyone else that night, I thought that the picece in the display was the real thing, and so did Krad.

I remembered him taking over my body yesterday night, and it was only when Dark had done a signifacant amount of damage to him was when I could take back control. But I also remembered something that Krad had said right before Dark attacked...

"What's the matter Dark? Have somewhere else to be tonight?"... "Perhaps flirt some more with that timid human girl?"

Honestly, I didn't know what Krad had been talking about, but a timid human girl... Just who was he talking about? Every time I had tried to ask him, he refused to tell me the answer. Perhaps he just meant Risa Harada?

My thoughts were interupted by the sound of the door bell, I walked over to answer it, not that it could be anyone of importance anyway.

"H-Hello Satoshi, I brought you your homework, since you weren't in class today." She said, handing me the work that I had missed.

"Why did you come to deliver it?" I asked, the few times I had been absent, it was always Daisuke who had brought me the homework, now why would Shizuku be doing it?

"B-Because I only live a few blocks away and the teacher asked me to, that's why." That's right, I've seen her walking in this way home before, she lives only a couple of blocks away.

"Would you like to come in?" I reluctantly said, it didn't matter to me what she did, but it was still polite to offer.

"S-Sorry, I can't. I wanted to head over to the Utsukushi-sa museum today before it closed. See you later," She said, gave a small wave goodbye, and turned to leave.

"Why that particular museum?" I asked, there were plenty of other museums, some closer in distance from here than that one.

She turned around again and said, "J-Just because, that's my favorite museum, that's all."

"But why-" I started, but she soon cut me off.

"Is it my favorite museum? I'm not completely sure, but I just seem to like it more than others." She turned to leave again, not particularly in a hurry, but she didn't pause or anything.

"Thanks," I said, just as she was about to walk down the stairs. Shizuku turned around to face me, "Any time," she said, and left the building. That's when it hit me, a timid girl, I thought, and knew that she had to be the answer.

But why her? She doesn't seem too out of the ordinary, what would Dark or Krad want with a girl like that... I kept thinking to myself, but quicky changed the subject of my thoughts.

Thinking back, I remember clearly last night that "The Eternal Timepiece" seemed to be giving of a magical pressence. It was so faint that it was barely there, but I could of sworn that I felt it...

If this so called owner somehow put their own feelings into this replica, probably without knowing it, they must of had very strong emotions. But still, Dark said that he would steal the real version, tonight. But not even he could know where it is, he wouldn't be able to find it in a week on his own, not even if the Niwas are helping him. If only the owner really knows where "The Eternal Timepiece" is, then...

This person is going to be in trouble, I thought. But I if could find out just who the owner is before tonight, I may be able to protect it after all.

So I went over to my computer, using the police database to find the mystery person, but no luck. Aperrently, this person keeps a super low profile, the only imformation that I could seem to find was the schools that they went to, and the collage they graduated from a couple years ago. And as for a name, the most recent one was Himeko Davidson, but it said in the database that they had recently changed their name. There was no avalible picture, address, age, or other information of anykind.

What kind of database is this? There is barely any information at all, how could anyone have this low a profile?

By this time, it was already night, and I had basicly found out nothing about this person that I could use, except the fact that it was a woman from the name "Himeko". It was almost time until Dark said that he would steal the masterpiece, so I knew I was down to my last option.

I picked up the phone and called the number, I hoped I could of done it on my own, but time was running out, and then he answered.

"Ah, Satoshi! Is there something that I can do for you at this hour?" My father said, a little confused at why I had called him so late.

"Actually yes, what is the current name of the owner of the Utsukushi-sa Art Museum? It is very important." I said, my voice was a little rushed, but he didn't seem to notice.

"The current name, well let me see, they changed their name a couple of months ago, but it looks like the current name is... Shizuku Sakishima."

Shizuku's POV:

"Stupid night time!" I said, screaming at no one, but it wasn't my fault that I wasn't able to sleep for the past few nights. I don't know why I was mad at night time itself, but I didn't really care. Not that I had ever needed much sleep though, I could get through 48 hours with only about 6 hours of sleep. But still, there was nothing better to do at night, and I really didn't feel like going outside.

"Uuhh," I groaned to myself, and started rummaging through my closet, until I finally found what I was looking for.

There were a bunch of music books, all of them for the piano, although I did have one or two violin ones lying around somewhere. I grabbed a couple of the books, a wax candle which I always kept handy by my bedside, and a box of matches that I kept on one of my drawers. I than opened my window which lead out to a small balcony, and started to climb upward. But I didn't go as far as the roof this time, this time, I crept up to a window which led to the attic. The window was locked, but it didn't take me long to open it, and I went inside.

There were only two things up there, a black piano, and a white bench. (Don't even remind me how hard it was to get them up here) But I liked them here, I had always loved to play music, it always sounded so beautiful. In a way it's just like a piece of art you observe with your ears instead of your eyes. It's just like a painting or... "The Enteral Timepiece". I thought, I felt a small smirk come across my face. No one would of guessed that it would be in the hands of an 18 year old girl, which made my plan even more perfect.

My plan, it wasn't big, I had just switched the real one with a copy I had made, but I didn't really expect Dark to fall for that, I guess he is just more idiotic than I thought he would be. Now, the artwork was as safe as it could get, hidden in plain sight, well, not exactly plain sight, but you get the idea. It was just in my left pocket, no guards to draw attention, and it was in a place that no one would think to look.

Truthfully, I just didn't want this artwork to get stolen, it was enchanting, and on top of that, it had sentamental value to me...

Oh well, time to relax... I thought, lighting the match to bring the flame to the candle, I set it on top of the piano. Skimming through the piano books, I found a rather pleasent song, and started to play the soft melody. The song itself was quiet but depressing. It contained various sharps and falts and moved all around the keyboard. These were the kind of songs that I loved to play, the ones that I would seem to lose myself in, until it ended.

I took my fingers off of the keys, and my foot off of the petal, and did a quiet sigh to myself. I loved playing music, but every time that I played, it reminded me of my mother, and how she would play. That actually what that magazine article about her was about, how she used to preform all over the world, bringing beauty to all of those people who wished to listen.

"Who knew that such beautiful music could come from such a beautiful girl?" My eyes widened at the sudden voice, but it seemed sort of familiar. Oh great, I thought, and turned around to see Phantom Dark across the small room. The last person in the world that I wanted to see tonight.

I stood up from the bench, and he had already made his way from near the window sill, to a couple feet away from me. He then grasped my chin in his hand, forcing me to look him in eyes.

"Now what are you doing up here all alone?" He said, and I really didn't want to answer any question that he asked me.

"None of your buisness!" I said, pulling away from him, I wasn't going to act like I was scared, because I felt like the exact oppisite. "Now what is the real reason that you are here? Shouldn't you be out stealing something?" I said, if he was shocked in my sudden change in behavior, he didn't show it. He just had a smirk, one that I would just love to rub off of his face.

"Now now, no need to be so cold, that really isn't like your personality. But if you are really that interested, I would like to know where you are keeping "The Eternal Timepicece", Miss Sakishima. And don't deny not knowing what I'm talking about, because I already know." He said, and grabbed my left arm with a strong grip, he obviously wasn't letting go.

"Let go of me! So what if I'm the owner? I'm still not telling you where it is, and there's nothing that you can do to make me!" I yelled to his face, struggling to get free, but failing.

"You want a bet?" He said, for a second I was confused. But before I knew it, he had grabbed me by the waist, and pulled me toward the window. I was still stuggling, but with my eyes closed and my teeth clenched. The more I made an effort of ecsaping, the tighter his grip on me became.

"If I were you, I would open my eyes." He said, and reluctantly, I did. Only to see that we were in the clouds, flying high above the town.

"Let me go already!" I yelped, seeing that he obviously wasn't playing around.

"Not until you tell me where you're hiding it, and besides, I like you in my arms" He said, trying to sweet talk me, but I'm not one to fall for that kind of garbage.

"Then whatever, because I'm not telling you where it is!" I said, which was absolutly true. I was not about to let this artwork fall into the wrong hands.

And now that I thought about it, it was kind of funny that Dark was going through all this trouble, when "The Eternal Timepeice" was still in my pocket. Dispite the circumstances, I smiled, just a little bit, but made sure to hide it from Dark.

Dark's POV:

She wasn't cooperating, which was making things more difficult. I have to say, Shizuku is much more determined than she looks, but I still need the art work.

Might as well start a conversation, it will be much more interesting than just flying around in silence. I thought, and was glad that Daisuke was asleep tonight, I knew that I would get the riot act from him if he saw that I was holding her aganist her will.

"So why is that perticular piece of artwork so special to you?" I asked, which I really wanted to know. Heck, this girl was practicly risking her life for it's safety. Not that I would do anything to hurt her, but it's not like she was completely sure of that.

"Why would you want to know? Stop talking to me" She said sternly, and I noticed that she wasn't stuttering at all tonight, strange.

"One, because I want to know why you want to protect it so badly, and two, you really aren't in any position to be calling the shots."

She hesitated, looking down at Azumano, but finally answered, "I really don't know," she said, her voice now low and calm, like she was thinking about something. "Perhaps because it was my mother's favorite piece of art, and because it once belonged to her..." Shizuku said, a little unsure of the answer herself.

"So, your mother died, didn't she. She owned the museum, and passed it down to you, am I right?" I said, starting to soften up to her, since she obviously was depressed. But for some reason, she was trying to hide it.

"I will answer that question if you answer one of mine first," she said.

How hard could answering a question be?" I thought, and quickly agreed to the arangement.

"I-If I tell you the answer right now, will Daisuke be able to hear too?" She said, and for a couple moments, I was in complete shock. How did she find out? What is she some sort of government spy?

"This time, you can't deny it, Dark. From the first night that you spoke to me on the rooftop, I knew."

"Okay, I won't deny it, but how did you find out?" There was no possible way that she could find out by just looking at me, so how did she do it?

"I learned to read auras a while ago, I don't remember how, so don't ask me, but I just can. And although you two act completely different, you still have the same aura, which is impossible unless you are one and the same." She said, her voice normal, not stern or scared, but still soft. And I found myself chuckling, this girl centainly was unique.

"Well, you are much smarter than I expected, not many people have the gift to read auras... And as for your question, Daisuke can't hear us right now, I promise." I said, actually glad that Daisuke was asleep right now. "So answer my question, what happened to you mother? And why would it matter if Daisuke could hear or not?"

"Died of a terminal disease when I was five, for some reason, she had the disease right after she gave birth to me. And I just didn't want Daisuke to know because I know that he would make a bigger deal out of it than it really is."

"You know that it probably wasn't your fault..." I said, I kind of felt sorry for her now.

"It wasn't, but that didn't stop my father for blaming me, happiest day of my life when he died in a car crash four years ago..." She replyed, and now she was confusing me, from what Daisuke knows, she lives with her dad, but how can she if he's dead?

"But from what I understand, you live with your dad and travel around the world because of his job..."

"That was a lie, and I have my reasons for telling it." She said, still looking down to avoid eye contact.

"So you have your secrets as well? I guess I can respect that, for now anyway." I said, and changed my direction toward Shizuku's house, if she wanted to protect it "The Eternal Timepiece" that badly, then I guess that it is in the right hands.

Emiko will understand, won't she? I thought. Knowing her, she probably wouldn't, but there is nothing that she will be able to do about it by the time I get back.

Slowly, I decended towards the house, and flew through the window to her room, letting Shizuku go. She looked at me, a little confused, and I have to admit that I was too.

"I think that you are suitable to take care of the artwork, so I'll leave it with you." I said, and turned to the window sill to leave.

"W-Wait," was all she said, but I turned around all the same. I saw her reach into her pocket, and in her hand was "The Eternal Timepiece".

"Take it," she said and held it out to me, "I-I just didn't know if you would take good care of it or not before, but now I'm sure that you will."

I smiled at her, and took it from her hand, and I found it hard to believe that she was holding onto it all this time.

"Why didn't you give it more protection? If you don't mind me asking," I said, after that whole speech, she didn't hide it in some warehouse, or some safe with a thousand guards, she just hung onto it.

"Would you have ever thought that I had it all this time?" She said, crossing her arms, and I realized her point. So as a response, I just shook my head.

"You look just like your mother, you know that?"

"I've been told that before," she said, of course she had, it was true after all.

"By the way, you sound better when you don't stutter." Was the last thing a said before I lept out of the window, using Wiz to fly back to the house.

Maybe she's not that bad after all... I thought.

A/N: Hello! Yes, it was Shizuku who fooled Dark, and for all of you who thought it was Krad who tricked him, you were WRONG! Omg I love twists in the story, and here we found out a tiny bit about her past, it's not much, but this chapter is longer than any of my other ones, so R&R por favor!