The dream was different this time. Usually I would burst out of Maka's chest and then look down and see the damage that I had caused. That part was the same but somehow... Not. I was the same looking down at Maka as she screamed wordlessly in anger, the background was the same unimportant whiteness as always, and so that means that it has to be Maka. At first I didn't know what it was, then all of a sudden it hit me! Her eyes! Maka has the most electrifying green eyes that I have ever seen (not that I would ever tell her that). But this Maka, the one that screams as I protrude from her chest, her eyes are brown. They are not exiting or intense like Maka's, these eyes are more calm and caring. But now the question is whose eyes are they? And why am I dreaming about them?

I sprung out of bed to the sounds of screams and alarms wincing with pain as the IV was ripped from my arm. I didn't have the gentlest awakening. I saw Blackstar jump out the window as both stein and Maka turned to look at me. Immediately Maka was on top of me. What? I could feel her tears soaking into my hospital robe. The fuck? I did what any decent human being would and I put my arms around her while my brain was still trying to make sense of the situation. Maka, who fearlessly battled together with me against madness, was crying? What the fuck? Finally my voice caught up with my thoughts and I asked the all-important question, "Maka what happened?"

She looked up at me "soul?"

" I'm here Maka, are you alright?"

"I can't feel your soul"

This isn't how things were supposed to turn out, I think as I jump from roof to roof. I shouldn't be fleeing the academy. I shouldn't be leaving soul. However undesirable this situation is I must persevere. A ninja never gives up. But the real question is: what am I going to do now? The academy stands in the way of my goal and me. After they figure out what I did to Maka and to soul there is no way they would ever forgive me. Not that I need them to. But they have soul. The thing that I now want most. Only one choice then, I stop at the death city limit, "guess I'm going to have to tear it down."

Black star is one of my closest friends, but his empty promises were really wearing thin. He was always promising to "make me a death scythe" yet we never hunted a godamn soul. Not that it mattered; I actually had no interest in becoming one of Shinigami's weapons. I was content with my life. Was. But for some unexplainable reason that wasn't the case anymore. Now I need to be strong, strong enough to take what's mine.

When I consumed my brother I gained more than his power. In my dreams sometimes I relive his memories, see his past. And while it seems that kishin work alone that is not the case.

I could feel every eye on me as I entered the building. On the outside it seemed to be just and odd looking sand dune in the middle of the desert, however on the inside it's a coliseum booming with kishin betting money or souls or fighting in the arena.

Many nervous eyes are on me as I walk through the crowd. Many of the weak kishin seem ready to bolt while the strong ones extended their claws or clenched their fists. I ignore them as I walked up to the bartender who was a rather large kishin that looked like an ordinary middle-aged balding man, but from the neck down he was anything but normal.

I steeled my gaze and looked him in the eye as he unflinchingly looked back at me and said, " What can I do for a student of the reaper?"

I could see everyone in the room tense up fight or flight reflexes beginning to trigger. "Former student, me and the academy are... At odds." I replied with as even of a tone as I could manage.

The bartender walked away from the counter and into a back room behind him. The minute that he was in there was tense. I'm well trained and one of the most versatile weapons in Shinbusen. But with all these kishin around me, it was going to be a short fight. Finally he walked out and behind him he dragged a man probably in his 30's with brown hair who was cuffed and gaged. The bartender took off the man's gag and put him on the counter between the two of us. " Kill him."

Immediately the man started screaming begging for help, " please don't do this! Come on I'm a human being! I have a wife and three kids with the fourth on the way can't you please let me go? I promise I won't tell any body about this, so please, please let me live. I want to live, I'll do anything you want so please, just let me live!"

I looked down at the man. Could I kill him? A husband, a father, could I take this man away from his family? Forever? Murdering this man would make me just like all the monsters that I've been fighting for the last few years. As I stared at him his pleas and cries only grew more intense. Could I really kill this man in cold blood, even of it's for soul?

Of course I can.

All the kishin stood silent as I eternally silenced his squealing with my blade hand. As his soul floated up from his body I grabbed it with my hand. And crushed it. I looked to the bartender, "I would like to enter the coliseum, please."

I looked between stein and Maka in disbelief, "Tsubaki did what!" I couldn't believe this, they were telling me that Tsubaki fought Maka and abandoned Blackstar, for me? " That doesn't even make sense, Tsubaki would never abandon Blackstar and you two are best friends! Tsubaki would never do that!"

I'm pretty sure that Maka's mushy crying moment was over, in fact I think I'm one comment away from getting Maka chopped, I could tell by the way she was yelling in my face, "listen soul, I wouldn't believe it either if she didn't say it to my face! I fought her, to save you! She fought back. " Maka looked down, " and won. Because of that our resonance rate is zero, we no longer have any comparability. We can't even be partners anymore."

I grabbed her arms and pulled her close. I whispered in her ear, "no matter what happens we will always be partners." I could feel her relax into my embrace. "But right now Tsubaki needs us."

"What! How could you say that! She fought me! And abandoned Blackstar! And for some reason she's obsessed with you!"

"That's what I'm talking about! Tsubaki is nothing like the person your describing. What I'm saying is maybe there's some darker forces at work. She could be possessed, or maybe a witch is controlling her, maybe that's not even Tsubaki. But point is there's something wrong and we need to get to the bottom of it."

Maka looked at me warily, I could tell she was still convinced Tsubaki had betrayed us. I just couldn't accept that she had betrayed me.

The coliseum is a place where kishin both weak and strong gather in order to converse and relax and for the right price, purchase human souls. However it does serve another purpose. My brother was never one with a lot of money, but what he did have was strength and for the strong you could fight in the coliseum against other kishin. The fights are to the death and for every hundred battles one the victor is rewarded with a few human souls, and they of course get to eat the souls of the losers which is why I'm here. While I no longer wish to serve the DWMA having the power of a death scythe can only help me in my quest. For soul.

And that's how I found myself in the kishin arena fighting three kishin at once. One would think this would be against the rules; the kishin don't seem to be too big on rules.

The small one flying in the air dove at me with its razor tail poised to strike while the other two moved at me in a pincer attack. I close my eyes and concentrate I hear their foot steps draw near I feel theirs souls closing in on me. "Shadow puppet!" My shadow grows into a three dimensional figure with a small head and long arms as the familiar tattoo of my brother covers my skin. The shadows arms branch out and pierce my targets causing their bodies to dissipate and revealing their bright red souls. I grab each one and swallow it while walking out of the arena. I smiled to my self " that's four souls today"; I walked over to the board to watch Mitch (the bartender) add this win to my other one.

After I left the arena for the day I headed south to a cabin that my brother used to stay in after his matches. All right maybe cabin was being a little too generous; it was a cave with a door, a bed, and a TV. But hey it had cable. I took off my clothes and dropped into my bed letting the events from today play in my mind. I found a kishin arena, earned their trust (sort of), and am now on my way to becoming a death scythe. Feeling happy about today's events I pulled the comforter up to my neck and let sleep consume me.

Meanwhile from Blackstar's pov

I looked down from the top of the academy. It was night now and the search for Tsubaki is still ongoing. Maka and stein are both focusing their soul perception in order to find her, their even flying in Azusa to help. It won't matter though. Tsubaki is good at what she does and they won't ever catch her if she doesn't want them to. It's different for me though, once you've resonated with someone and felt his or her soul in such an intimate way you never forget. I'm sure soul could be a million miles away and Maka could point him out on a map. It's the same for me. I know where Tsubaki is, but do I really want to find her?

I look up at the stars and try to imagine what she could be doing now. I have no idea. I thought I knew Tsubaki but this is nothing like her. Whenever I was lost I would always look to her for advice even though I rarely listened. She was always there listening to me rant. Maybe I should have listened to her more often. Because now I have to wonder, do I know anything about her?

Ha! Now who writes short chapters! Seriously though this probably wont happen again. This is actually two chapter that I wrote at the same time because I just flew to japan and back. Seriously it was awesome! Except for that part where I was flying for 24 hours! But whatever, I wrote how you enjoyed. I love your reviews and please let me know if you like the chapters this way, make sure to let me know of any mistakes I made (writing so much means I get lazy editing :P) if you tell me I mot go back and fix it then re post. Thank you R&R! :3