Sometimes I feel like I'm way too random for my own good.

What do you guys feel like sometimes?

Read, Re-read and Review.

Much Love –

Wait, what AM I DOING?!

...

Haha. I crack myself up. XD Okay, aside from that useless/pointless intro, let us celebrate! I am updating with a most likely would be shocking (what now?) chapter and I'm currently still up at 12 past something something. Why is it that chapter ideas come to me in the wee hours (say what now?) of the night?! Huh.

Let's thank our reviewers! Thank you so much, amianrox (I'm very, very glad and relieved that you liked it XD), magicdemi-god223 (I know, right? So confusing! Who is writing this stuff? ... ... Oh yeah... Me. Haha. Don't worry I've been dropping small hints here and there, and bigger ones sooner or later. I hope this update is soon enough XD), Shimmering Icicles (I'm glad you're liking this story so far! Yep. Most of my subjects hate me, but that's okay, I'll keep on liking them... There really isn't a serious way of that! Haha.) and FascinatingRhythm (my wonderful co-author! I am so glad and happy and elated and excited and all those happy-synonyms!) Thank you for making time despite being busy (and school) and everything to write a review more than one-sentence long. I know I've said this once, but I'll say it again ('cause I'm random like that), even a 'less than three' review or a smiley face would have made my entire week so much brighter. Knowing that people still pay attention to these stories means the world to me. Literally. So, if you're part of those people who have scanned through a chapter out of coincidence, or those who waits patiently for another one, I thank you all very much! Here. Take my virtual hugs!

On with the chapter. Enjoy! 'Cause that's what matters most.

oooooOooooo

Chapter 11

After falling asleep on a dingy, dark corner, Dan has been on the run almost immediately. He felt like he has been running from Texas to Canada with Buffy hot on his heels. Come to think of it, how is that crazy mutt? Dan shook his head, his dirty blonde hair flying in all directions as he willed his legs to go faster. He can't afford to be distracted over his best friend of a dog, no matter how much he owes Buffy for completing a job he's been trying to do: humiliating Ian Kabra until he declares the threat of suing. "I'll sue the landscape architect!" Dan laughed for what it's worth and looked for other warehouses that happens to be abandoned and near a long array of pretty, blooming cherry blossoms. He deftly looked behind him to see if he was being followed and slowed into a jogged when he wasn't. Obviously, he was mistaken about the warehouse, but in his defense, that was the only abandoned warehouse in the vicinity.

He's completely lost now. He didn't even know this part of Japan existed! A part where everywhere are trees and weeds. No people. A handful of building that with just one huff of breath, would crumble to bits and pieces. Dan let out a long, huge whine as he hit his forehead repeatedly with his palm. "People just have to be complete –" Dan was cut off when he realized just what he had passed through. He jogged backwards, stopped and tilted his head to the right. There, on top of an abandoned, scary-looking-to-the-point-of-haunted warehouse, is a cobwebbed sign written in hiragana. Thank goodness, because Dan really didn't bother with all the kanji. It was way too hard and hard work is Amy's job. Sa-ku-ra Ya-shi-ro.

"Yashiro?" Dan asked, his face crinkling in concentration. That sounded familiar, but all that's registering is a blurry anime dude. "The freak does that – Oh!"

Sakura Company. Cherry blossom.

It didn't make much sense, but the pieces seemed correct, so what the heck. "Well, that solves it!" Dan, with more caution than last time, twisted the (unsurprisingly) unlocked doorknob. He looked around the dimly lit warehouse and entered with the lightest of footsteps. "Helping Hand?" Nobody's home. Don't tell me, I'm in the wrong place again! Dan groaned, glaring at the dark room without bothering to step inside. He'd have enough disappointment in this place. Now all he has to do is use whatever Japanese he knows to ask directions. "Yeah... That's not gonna work out pretty good," he told himself disgustedly, remembering that all he knows of Japanese words are martial arts and food. Oh yeah, and anime. He doubts that asking about the Dugtrio would get him to find Natalie. He was about to slam the door back in place, probably send it swinging pathetically on its hinges when...

"You're very late."

xxxOOOxxx

A raven-haired teenage boy clad in a V-neck, dark blue sweater, greeted Dan at one of the rooms of the warehouse as he finally managed to barge past the freaking maze of corridors. Lying at a makeshift bed behind Raven Hair is none other than Natalie Kabra.

Dan panted, catching his breath before thinking of something smart to say. But the other guy beat him to it. "Where are the others?" Raven Hair asked, looking at the door with which Dan came in, probably expecting Jonah, Hamilton and Ian to come running next.

"They're... Not... Here," Dan said in between gulps of air. He coughed abruptly, slapping a dangling cobweb out of his hair. "Give her to me now." He pointed at the sleeping figure of the girl Kabra.

The black-haired boy regarded him expressionlessly. "A few pointers first, if you don't mind," he said blankly. Dan could only glare at him, but his muscles tensed, anticipating an attack. Raven Hair noticed this and said, "I'm not going to attack you. As I've said in all my messages, I'll give you back the girl... and the antidote you need for that blonde one."

"How do I know... you're not lying?" Dan asked, his breathing slowly returning to its normal pace. "How do I know you didn't send those... dudes to attack us?" He was referring to the men in black wannabes and those biker dudes from a little while ago.

Raven Hair's dark eyes steeled for a moment. "There were attackers?" he murmured to himself. His fingers fidgeted in a quick manner, as if they were agitated and they should be doing something, while his face betrayed nothing. "Nobody was supposed to know they were here."

Dan rolled his eyes, not believing his absent-minded monologue. "Sure, sure. Just give me Nat back 'cause I'm at a deadline with her murderous brother and you do not want to miss a deadline with that Cobra," Dan informed him, remembering that time when he forgot to do his assignment for the Lucian classes. He seriously thought Ian's head would pop right out of his head.

Raven hair glanced behind him at Natalie. A flicker of something – probably wistfulness – passed by those emotionless eyes. "I think she'll be just fine with you guys," he told Dan finally. Then, he smirked – the first direct expression he'd shown so far. "After all, you Cahills are famous for your TLCs."

Dan grimaced. "I know you didn't mean the sandwich," he said.

The other guy glared at him, clearly not amused. "Of course not. Look, Cahill, you should be grateful that little girl got out in time," he told Dan seriously, all of the previous and somewhat, scarce humour he had awhile back now gone. "She's in a worse shape than that blonde one as it is."

"What do you mean?" Dan glanced at Natalie's direction immediately.

"You'll find out when she wakes up," the guy said dismissively. "Also, that Hollywood dude's girlfriend's antidote is the poison running through her veins right now."

Dan straightened at that. "You mean, Nat's poisoned right now?" he yelled, suddenly ticked off by Raven Hair's calm attitude.

Raven Hair looked at him laughingly. "The poison has already taken effect, but your little princess won't die," he assured him. "There's no antidote for her, either. Just... therapy of some kind, I guess." He shrugged nonchalantly.

"She's not my little princess," Dan grumbled, wanting so bad to throw his worn-out sneakers at this jerk. "She's her older brother's princess. So, our Cahill TLC will make the effects of whatever sadistic poison you idiots put in her go away."

"Eventually," Raven Hair agreed with a grin.

Dan clenched his hands to fists. "And the antidote for your other victim is in her blood?"

Raven Hair nodded. "Just take some samples from her, have your family's geniuses do the magic trick." He waved a hand offhandedly. "Don't worry. It's so easy even I could do it."

"Is that all you're going to say?" Dan asked grumpily.

"Not quite," he replied, holding out a finger. "You do know that all of this help does not come for free, right?"

Dan glared at him, fuming. "I know. You're far too evil to give away free stuff."

"I'm not doing this for you," Raven Hair said bluntly. Dan said nothing so he continued. "There is someone I need you guys to look after until that person's mission is done and over with."

Dan narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "Who?"

"You'll know when you see her."

"Huh. You're sister, then?" Dan asked, bouncing on the balls of his feet.

Raven Hair did not respond for a long moment. "You're not the only ones who hold on tightly to your family ties," was all he said. Dan caught a quick saddened look that flashed in the guy's eyes. Suddenly, Raven Hair turned his back to him and started walking away. "Take her now," he called out, his hands stiffed inside his pockets. "And don't let people important to you out of your reach again."

Dan watched as he disappeared behind the back door of the warehouse and picked Natalie up.

As he walked outside, determined to get to the nearest train station as fast as he could, Natalie began to stir in his arms. Dan sighed in annoyance. "You're a lot of trouble than your worth, ya know that, Cobra," he griped before she could even open her eyes. Natalie flinched at the sound of his voice and her amber eyes flew wide open. Dan raised his eyebrows at her, prepared to take her snappy, British-accented comeback head-on. Natalie blinked twice as she looked back directly in his eyes.

Then, she spoke. "Who... Are you?" she asked Dan in a tone of voice that didn't belong to the coffee-skinned girl who is willing to yell her lungs off to get him to shut up.

Dan processed that for a moment because the snapping wasn't there, the poison-laced insults were missing and the skin-stinging slaps never happened. His eyes widened and then, he cursed under his breath. "Your brother is going to kill me," he muttered sullenly.

Jonathan pushed his raven black locks out of his eyes as he listened in on the young, pitiful Cahills. He let out a low, hard chuckle, realizing that the Cahills may not just be the only pitiful human beings at the moment.

oooooOooooo

Aww... Jonathan, just what have you got in store for us? Oh gods, Ian is going to kill Dan... or not. 'Cause he can't do that. Just yet. Oh and yeah, I may or may not regularly place sneak peeks of the next chapter from here on out. Haha.

QUESTION of the DAY:

Sometimes I feel like I'm way too random for my own good. What do you guys feel like sometimes? (Copy and Paste at its best XD) Oh and who's waiting for The Mark of Athena as much as I am? And do any of you guys know when's the release date for the Kindle version of Shatterproof? Hihi.

SNEAK PEEK FOR CHAPTER 12:

"Sounds like something a Holt would say," Evan confided to Jake.

Jake sniffed. "I wonder why that is," he drawled sarcastically. Evan raised his eyebrows at this comment. Jake shrugged. "Holt's already ten steps ahead of me. Who would've thought?" he explained with a tone of disbelief. He looked at Evan like the latter had better cards than his. "Be thankful Kabra's not so quick."

Evan yawned and stretched his arms over his head before sauntering over to the girls. Before he could walk another step however, he told Jake, "I wouldn't say he's not. He moves slow, but digs deep."

Were there any errors I missed (oh and thank you clara0414! I've finally edited the errors you pointed out in Fabula Secunda and in this story as well!), things I've confused you with, or randomness at its worst?

Read, Re-read and Review (or not... haha.)? Smiley faces anyone?

Much Love, Peace Out.

AngelicSpring.