A/N: This is the second to last update! Next week, I'll be updating the final chapters on Wednesday before I depart to Washington. I apologize that this chapter is so long, the words just kept coming you know? No? Ok ... Anyways, enjoy!

The night was silent except for whispers of wind. Up in the sky, the moon chuckled nearly choking the air each time. Stars watched as the cars drove with anticipation.

A battle was brewing, and they knew it.

Inside the cars it was a different story. Soul, Maka, Black*Star, and Tsubaki had chose to ride in their rental car. Kid, Patty, and Liz decided to drive along with Kid's father, Shinigami. Maka's father, Spirit, was also riding in Shinigami's jet black van that almost blended perfectly into the night. He was the exact reason Maka turned down the offer to ride with them.

Marie, Stein, Azusa, and some guy named Justin who had his headphones in ninety-nine percent of the meeting were riding in a similar van, but it was white. Ox and Harvar rode in their same vehicle as they arrived in, and as Kid's van led the caravan of drug dealers, Soul and Ox's car stayed back.

Soul reviewed the plan in his head as they inched closer and closer to the housing sign that indicated the changed turfs. Soon enough, it was just a blur as they passed it. Maka applied more pressure to the gas as she adapted to the higher speed limit in that part of town. Black*Star huffed as he watched out the window, and Tsubaki's eyes followed his gaze. In the streets, people were running home yelling calls of warning to their neighbors. Children were pulled inside by their urgent parents.

The street lights flickered on and off, as if too hesitant to see what was about to happen. Families who were eating dinner turned off their lights and shut the blinds. It was almost as if they all locked their doors at once, because Soul could've sworn he heard a small click come from every house on that street. He wondered if it was from them. If the people were afraid of the gang driving down in vans and cars. Then he saw it as they passed a drug store.

Some punks were breaking into the store through the windows. A man yelled out trying to block his daughter from the flying glass as his wife pleaded with her hysterical husband to move along. Soul worried by the way she gritted her teeth and tightened her hands on the wheel that Maka would pull them over and fight.

She didn't.

They continued to drive by as her eyes grew harder by the block.

Kid was never one to turn a blind eye to something. Never. If something was unsymmetrical, he reached for symmetry. Improvement. Order, but most of all Kid wanted balance. He wanted balance in his house, balance in his weapons, balance in his clothes, and balance in justice. What he was seeing Arachnophobia doing wasn't anything close. Quite honestly, despite his senseful and effective nature, Kid wanted to shoot them all down. He wanted to pull alongside that drug store and bring all those bastards to their knees. To restore symmetry to this turf.

Yet he never asked his father to stop the van.

He just watched through the tinted windows, and he hoped they reached Kirikou soon. Kid felt a squeeze of his hand, and he looked over from the window to his palms momentarily. The first thing he noticed was that Liz painted her fingernails. Red. The color of their gang.

She smiled a tiny little smile at him, and he returned it though his seemed much more empty. What was he supposed to do? Tap dance? Liz didn't drag on it though. Instead, she squeezed his hand a little more until Kid finally squeezed back. His eyes dropped permanently from the window; he didn't need to look at every building or person to tell that this turf was hell.

"Kid," Liz whispered.

"Hm," He responded.

"It's going to be all right."

Kid gritted his teeth, and he shook his head.

"Look at how unbalanced -unsymmetrical- everything has become," Kid replied bitterly.

Liz nodded, but she kept her hold on Kid's hand.

"I see it all too, you know? I see how when you load up the guns you make sure to run through procedure twice. I see how when you hang your head down, somehow your bangs always fall over your face perfectly each time. I see the hatred burning in both of your eyes right now, but I know you feel this way not just because of the lack of symmetry. It's there because you have empathy for the people they're hurting. Once you go crazy shooting every person you see down, it's gone. You become apathetic like them. If we're ever going to get out of this lifestyle, convince your dad this isn't what you want to do, then we got to be better than those guys. That's why I never let you touch those drugs. I don't want to ever see you become like those punks out there."

Kid sat there, his eyes down casted on the floor.

"I know you do Liz. It's just ..." He trailed off as fumbled with his thumb against Liz's hand.

"Just what," Liz asked.

He looked over the seats to see his father sitting in the way back enjoying conversation with Patty. Once he was sure they weren't listening or caring about what was happening up front, he turned back around to Liz.

"It's just that, I don't want you to get hurt," Kid answered quietly.

Liz studied his face as he explained, "When I met you and Patty, and when we ganged up together, I hated myself for dragging you two into my mess. For a guy who wanted to get out of all this, here I am bringing the two most important people of my life into a turf that looks like hell, about to battle some bastards who hate my father, and I don't know if we'll win. We're out manned, out gunned, out numbered in just about everything. I wanted to be out of here right now, out of this life. I wanted you and Patty to be out of it too. Then I let Maka join and nearly have Soul cut off my head for it -with perfectly good reason- and I didn't even hesitate to let Tsubaki in the car even though it's obvious she and Black*Star have already been through hell and back. Father told me he was certain I would be a good guy and help people when I was younger. That he had hope I wouldn't up like Asura."

"So you do know him?"

"You could tell?"

She nodded, "I can tell a lot of things about you. Just like you can tell a lot of things about me, and we can both can tell a lot of things about Patty. We're partners after all."

Kid snorted at that.

"What?"

"Depends on how you use the word partner. Because between the two of us is different than the three -"

Liz blushed, "Ok wise guy, how do you know Asura?"

Kid's face turned serious again.

"He's my brother. Half brother I believe, but no matter what we're still related."

Liz's face dropped.

"Are you serious?"

Kid nodded, "Yes I am. See, I never really got to know him. Father wanted to set him on the right path, but he grew insane off the meth he was addicted to. He fears emotions greatly. So every time someone got too close, he tore them apart. Asura's madness off the drug is like a plague. It spreads, makes you question what you see, makes you high yourself and it's all off of his madness. It's how he tears people apart."

"He sounds pretty hard to beat," Liz muttered.

Kid nodded, "He is. I got into dealing so I can stop him. Now that I'm so close ... I just want to get out."

Liz leaned a bit against Kid. He could feel her perfectly even breaths against his neck. Kid couldn't help but smile faintly to himself. Maybe he rubbed off on her a little.

"You saved Patty and I, Kid. We probably would've died out there on the streets any longer. Believe it or not, it's safer with you. I feel safe with you around, and I know Patty does too. You're going to stop your brother, you're going to get away from this whole mess, and you're going to make all these people feel safe again too."

He leaned just the slightest back to her too, and he listened to her breathing as the van drove on.

"I like when you stay the nights. When Patty sleeps in the basement with her plush giraffe, and you sleep in my bed next to me."

"And why's that?'"

Kid leaned his head against her shoulder.

"I like feeling you breathe. You're breaths are even, especially when you sleep. Your hair sometimes is tossed over the pillows, but surprisingly it's symmetrical. I think I've might of been an influence on you," He said.

"Huh. I never noticed I breathed like that ... I didn't know my hair was symmetrical. Who knew?"

Kid kissed her shoulder in response, and she smiled back at him. They watched the sky out the window, trying to ignore the people outside the van. Trying to ignore the pain in that somehow beautiful moment. A telephone line came into their view, with a pair of sneakers hanging on them. They were baby blue, the color of Kirkou's gang. Liz sat up as soon as she saw them, as did Kid.

"We're approaching Kirikou's territory now. Everybody remember the plan," Spirit asked to the others over his walkie-talkie.

"Yep," Maka and Stein's voices said.

"Good, see you there," Spirit concluded.

When the van pulled up to Kirikou's lot Kim, Jacqueline, and the Pots were the first people in view. They all stood outside of Kirikou's house, guiding some of the people looking for a place to hide in to a house down the street. Kirikou's place wasn't anything fancy. It was just slightly bigger than Soul, Black*Star, and Kid's rented house. He had his windows boarded up though, and even then there were still bars over them.

There were bars over the doors too, and Kid knew he never left garage door unlocked like they did just by the delicate placement of the trash and garbage cans by it. It might've looked normal to any other person, but Kid knew their tricks. Drug dealers did have a tendency to get paranoid.

As Shinigami, Spirit, and Patty climbed out of the car and over to the rest of the group, Kid pulled Liz out of the opposite door. No one could see them on their side of the van, and with his black clothes Kid blended almost perfectly into the night.

He gripped Liz's hand tight, and despite the darkness their eyes still met. When they first met he was shorter than her, and even though he was still slightly younger than her, he had a few good inches ahead of her right then and there.

"Liz," Kid offered.

"Yeah?"

"Don't die."

"I won't."

"I mean it."

"I'll try not to."

She smiled, but he couldn't shake the thought of her cold body from his head.

"I'm being serious Liz, don't."

Liz opened her mouth to speak again, probably reassure him that she in fact wouldn't die, but he pulled by her waist so their chests touched and cut her off. He pressed his lips against hers, but as soon as Liz started to respond by running her hands through his fingers he pulled apart from her.

"Don't you die either," Liz replied back to him.

"I'll try my best to not die," Kid answered.

As they walked around opposite sides of the van, Liz smiled.

"I mean it," She said to him as they fell in alongside each other.

"I know you do," Kid responded, "I do too."

Soul walked up to Kirikou once he saw him step out of his house.

"Yo Kirikou," He called out to him.

Kirikou waved at Soul and the rest of the group as they approached him. He stood on the front steps of his house, watching as scared people fled from the streets.

"Things are getting pretty nasty out here," Maka commented as she shook his hand, "Maka Albarn. Soul's partner."

"And my daughter," Spirit added in before Shinigami chopped him.

"Stop interrupting," He order Spirit.

"Yeah, no doubt about that," Kirikou responded as he ignored Spirit and Shinigami, "Nice to meet you, Maka. I'm Kirikou Rung. Those twins over there are the Pots, my partners. That pink haired girl is Kim, the person Ox is heads over heels for -"

"I am not," Ox protested as a wide blush spread across his cheeks.

"And the girl standing next to her," Kirikou continued as he rolled his eyes at Ox, "with the dark hair is her partner, Jacqueline. They brought their stuff, and right now we're trying to get everyone to the safe house over there. That's the Pots' turf in the neighborhood down this street. See that crosswalk? X marks the spot. As far we know those thugs are just coming for me, so as long as the people are over there they should be fine."

"That's very thoughtful of you," Tsubaki commented.

Kirikou nodded at her, "Thanks, but I thinks it's just the non drug dealer side of me speaking up. I don't want the kids I used to babysit in middle school when they still had diapers to get hurt you know?"

Tsubaki smiled, "Yeah, I do."

"So when does this all go down," Soul asked.

"Well, I see you brought your own back up so whenever they-"

A chainsaw revved up in the distance. After pushing a little girl across the sidewalk and into Pots territory, Kim, Jacqueline, and the twin Pots rushed to the group.

"That sounds like Giriko," Harvar muttered.

At the mention of the name, a wild laugh cracked the air. It shook a few windows in houses, and it caused everyone to grit their teeth in distaste. Spirit followed Shinigami in the house, Marie and Stein stood side by side with a huge stone hammer shared between their hands, Azusa held a crossbow, Kid fell into his usual triangle formation with Patty, the Pots stood in front of Kirikou almost like bodyguards, Kim and Jacqueline stood side by side, Harvar gripped the spear with Ox, Black*Star and Tsubaki drew their knives, and Soul stood by Maka as she gripped her axe. For a moment it was silent. No screams, no words, nothing.

Then there was a shout.

From behind the parked vehicles, people wearing black jackets and white masks with four holes in them jumped out, weapons drawn.

"Get them away from the house," Kirikou shouted as the Pots zapped whoever came by them.

"On it," Tsubaki and Black*Star responded before diving into the crowd of masked figures together.

Azusa shot down ten people at a time, aiming for their legs so they wouldn't be able to move. When one masked person got too close, she hit them with the butt of her crossbow before launching herself on top of one of Shinigami's vans. Kim and Jacqueline had seemed to corner themselves in the garage, but then they lit a fire that ignited the masked people's robes red. Desperate to put the fire on themselves out, the figures rolled into the backyard trying to claim the somewhat wet grass.

It was a mistake.

Standing up on the roof, Liz, Patty, and Kid fired down on them. The masked figures yelled as the bullets skimmed past their faces, and they pleaded for the three to stop. As more people tried to enter the house though the backyard though, they did not stop.

Marie and Stein stood guard at the door, helping each other hammer anyone who dared to try to come by. Soul and Maka ran down the driveway, taking out more people with each swing of the axe.

"There's too many of them," Soul shouted over the other's cries.

"I know, but we gotta keep trying," She responded.

Soul simply nodded, and he caught the axe as Maka tossed it over her to him so he could deflect a blow. He slid it right back so she could cut through the leg of the person charging at them. They worked this same pattern as they guarded each other's backs, moving in harmony with each other's feet.

A few blocks away, there was a huge boom as heat soared through the sky. Red, orange, and yellow swallowed some trees and a couple of cars.

"Help me," A shrill woman's voice shouted.

The masked figures turned towards the flames, and they shouted for Arcane. All but one ran to the fire, and desperately rushed into the inferno. Instead that one figure watched, and shook their head when the rest of the masked figures started yelling out in pain.

"Fools," The person muttered.

"Leave, or else we'll make sure to hurt you the most," Stein said, "I'd love to dissect you after all."

A covered hand reached up and pulled the mask off of the person's face. It revealed a man probably around the same age as Justin, maybe a bit older, who had a nose piercing that covered his bridge, uncombed hair, a stubbled chin, and a sneer wearing down his lips.

"Didn't they realize, that that's not Arachne's voice," He snarled.

Maka raised her axe, and Soul spread himself out in front of her for defense, but then ... Justin stepped in.

"So I'm assuming you're Giriko. Pleasure to meet you," Justin said as he deflected Giriko's first blow.

Maka and Soul took the save to step over to Marie and Stein.

"Who do you think that was," Maka asked.

Stein's eyes looked out to the fire, a slight curious smile on his lips catching his cigarettes.

"There's no doubt in my mind that the person who caused that distraction was Black*Star and Tsubaki," Stein answered.

"Well," Soul said as he scratched his head, "That is one way of getting them away from the house."

There was a small thud behind them which was Kid, Liz, and Patty.

"I think we should go meet up with the Black*Star," Kid announced as he stepped over to Stein.

"That's not the plan though! We're supposed to guard the house until Asura shows up so Shinigami and Spirit can defeat him," Marie responded.

Kid pointed to the fire, "Yes, but if all those people thought that Arachne was endangered and rushed to protect her, then she must be around here somewhere. She must also not be a very experienced fighter."

Liz turned her gaze from the fire to Stein.

"Dr. Stein, what do you think we should do?"

Stein brought his hand up to his chin as the tip of his cigarette burnt off completely.

"I say ..." Stein cracked a smile as the street lights shone off his glasses, giving him a crazed look.

"Go for it."

"Stein, we can't go," Marie insisted as she placed a hand on his shoulder.

Stein placed his hand over hers and shook his head, "Marie, we're not going over there. We're going to keep guard at the house like we're supposed to. They're going over there. Soul, Kid, Maka, Liz, and Patty can go over there, find Black*Star and Tsubaki, and defeat Arachne. It'll be less work for us to deal with her anyways."

The kids looked up at Marie with puppy dog eyes. She groaned, and shook her head.

"I know I'm going to regret this later but ..."

Everyone listened attentively as her words trailed off on their own.

"You can go. Stick together though! And don't get lost! Stay away from the fire," She called out to them as they all sprinted off.

As Justin fought Giriko down the street, as Marie and the remaining others guarded the house, as Shinigami and Spirit prepared for Asura, as Black*Star and Tsubaki lit fire to the streets making even the stars burn with jealousy, as Maka, Soul, Liz, Kid, and Patty raced to join them, as Arachne waited, and as Asura slept, there was only one thing positive. There was only one thing that filled Maka's mind with freight:

The possibility of watching her friends die.