Anna felt the chill in the air while she stood beside Tatara at the counter as he paid for the dresses and shoes that he bought for her with his own money, Misaki standing just outside the shop.

Trying to control her trembling, Anna took her marbles out of her pocket and knelt on the floor, watching them as they began to spin rapidly in a circular motion. Her movement caught the eyes of her two companions, and Misaki came inside, his eyebrows furrowing as he squatted beside her. " What's wrong, Anna? " he asked, his usually rough voice gentle with concern for HOMRA's little princess.

In answer to his question, the little girl's already enormous ruby eyes became even wider, and both men didn't miss the flash of fear in them as Amira Arashikage's face flashed in Anna's mind, along with the sense of danger that had hovered over them at the time of their captivity under the Gold Clan. Without answering ( mainly because she couldn't speak ), Anna gathered her marbles and put them back in her pocket before rising swiftly to her feet, and running out the door, hearing Tatara and Misaki's voices as they called after her in alarm, but she didn't stop.

She couldn't stop.

She remembered Amira Arashikage well. She remembered how the older girl's presence had been a comfort to her in her terror while both of them were being held captive by Koshi Mizuchi for his own nefarious purposes, and the way the older girl had protected her like a guardian angel enfolding her wings around her.

She had protected Anna without fearing the price that she'd had to pay…

She hurried through the streets, her senses guiding her in the direction of her long lost friend until she reached what looked like a flower farm, or a greenhouse because of it was made of glass, and the plants inside. Anna couldn't decide which one it was, she didn't have time to do so as she entered the structure through the smashed glass on the side since the front door looked to be locked, the scents of various flowers and greenery greeting her.

It was already twilight, and Anna knew that if darkness fell, she would have a more difficult time finding Amira before her pursuer did.

Everything was silent except for the clicking of her heels on the marble tiles that made up the floor as she made her way around the maze of greenery ( even though she couldn't see their color ), feeling like she was in another world. Every now and then, she heard the sound of a bull finch, or a chickadee as the light of day finally faded over the horizon, wrapping her surroundings in shadows of the night that was illuminated by the stars and the full moon.

Amira, she thought as she tried to find her friend. Where are you?

Hikaru entered the construction site, keeping her ears open for sounds of pursuit from Isuke Inukai, her pursuer.

The moon was shining overhead and as she ducked under the steel beams that made up part of the skeletal structure she had entered, she felt her phone buzzing in her pocket. Ducking behind a mound of gravel, she reached into her pocket and pulled it out, her heart sinking when she saw the name on the Caller ID:

Saruhiko Fushimi.

Oh, Saruhiko, she thought despairingly. Why did you have to call now of all times?

Taking a deep breath to steady her pounding heart, she answered his call, cupping her hand over the mouthpiece to muffle the sound. " Hello? " she whispered.

" Where are you?! "

She would know that bored, yet defiant voice anywhere. " I can't talk right now, Saruhiko, " she answered apologetically. " Please don't worry about me – "

" I'm on my way, " he cut her off. " Wait for me, and don't hang up; keep the lines open. "

" Saruhiko… "

" My, my, " Isuke Inukai's voice called mockingly, making Hikaru freeze before she slowly turned to find her standing atop the gravel mound. " Still talking to your boyfriend from Scepter 4 at a time like this? "

Hikaru cursed inwardly. She had hadn't heard her opponent nearby, and for the first time since the chase started, she felt scared...

Saruhiko…

On the other end of their call, Saruhiko swore inwardly at the sound of the other girl's voice, and how she had seemed to insult his relationship with Hikaru, although the fact that many people might mistake them as a couple because of how close they were came as no surprise.

Without hanging up, the bespectacled young man followed the GPS on Hikaru's phone, ignoring the other clansmen who tried to remind him not to go anywhere on his own.

Out of my way, assholes, he thought. I've got someone important who needs me.

As he made his way closer to where Hikaru was, Saruhiko kept his ears open in case Isuke Inukai wasn't the only one on the scene, and he was glad he had taken the said precaution. Just as he entered the unfinished building on the construction site where Hikau's signal led, he felt the hair on the back of his neck stand up, causing him to dodge to the right just as he caught sight of a giant sledgehammer swinging in the direction of his head, before hitting the ground in a roll, and coming back on his feet as he drew his knives out with his left hand, placing his right hand on the pommel of his sword just as his attacker's weapon slammed into the concrete pillar which he had been standing near. The impact opened up a large, spider web- like crack in the concrete, and he felt a chill run through him as he realized that it could have been his head with a large, gaping hole in it if he hadn't been alert.

" So it's true what Inukai said, " a deep female voice observed gleefully, followed by the sound of metal being dragged across the floor as the speaker stepped out of the shadows. " Wherever the she-wolf goes, you go, and wherever you are, she follows. "

She was slightly taller than Hikaru, with long white hair tied in a high ponytail at the back of her head, her otherwise pretty face marred by the sadistically psychotic grin she bore, and the scar that ran down the left side of her forehead above her eye to the upper half of her cheek. She wore a school uniform consisting of a white shirt with a red collar and red cuffs, along with a black necktie and black skirt, her attire completed by a black stocking on one leg and a white sock on the other to symbolize the dual personalities that she was reported to have. The sledgehammer that she had tried to smash his head with was grasped in her left hand, the head on the ground.

It troubled Saruhiko to see that this girl had white hair and violet eyes just like Hikaru since she was the exact opposite of his beloved she-wolf, and he shuddered inwardly.

" Where is she? " he demanded.

His opponent's grin widened. " You don't have to worry about her, " she responded. " Inukai is having fun with her… "

Saruhiko tensed as she lifted the giant sledgehammer that she had tried to smash his head with as if it was mere pencil.

" Thanks for coming! " she yelled gleefully. " I've come to kill you! "

Amira listened for the sounds of Otoya Takechi as she made her way around the labyrinth of plants, her eyes eventually adjusting to the darkness that surrounded her as she reached a corridor that she suspected led to the administrative offices. She stopped somewhere near the restrooms when she saw a figure lying on the ground, and as she made her way closer to it, she saw that he was wearing a security guard's uniform, blood pooling around his head and shoulders.

Cautiously, she squatted beside him, her anger rising when she saw that his throat had been slit in a brutal fashion that she suspected that he must have felt until the life left him. Placing her hand over his eyes, she closed them before noticing that his gun was still in its holster, his spare bullets in his belt.

" I'm sorry, " she whispered as she divested him of his fully loaded weapon, and its spare ammunition before she draped her coat over his lifeless body. " You got caught in the middle of this drama because of me… " She had to stop for a moment as she felt tears of rage choke her when she saw his wallet sticking out of his pocket, and upon examining its contents, she saw a picture of the same man standing with a woman beside him each of them holding a child between six and ten in their arms.

She might go after his family once she's done with me.

If her anger had been the catalyst for her tears, it was also what stopped them. Angrily wiping away the tears that threatened to fall, she lifted her chin defiantly, her eyes glowing with rage like dark turquoises in the darkness where she knelt. " I'll make sure that she doesn't get to your family, " she vowed, laying her hand atop his coat covered body. " I promise. "

How many people have to die because others are so selfish? she wondered as she made her way back to the maze that she had left. When will it stop?

Ever since that fateful day when she was eleven, Amira suffered from nightmares where blood seemed to seep through the wooden floor of the summerhouse where her childhood had ended, the red substance flooding the interior until she and her mother were submerged in it, and she could no longer move. Many a night, she woke up either in a cold sweat, almost unable to breathe, or screaming like a banshee, something that had caused the night staff at the hospital where she was being treated a lot of distress and annoyance. She suspected that they were more relieved than she was when she was finally able to walk and had been discharged from the hospital because that way, they didn't have to hear her screaming in the middle of the night. After her escape from the facility at Nanakamado, she had been afraid of the mere idea of pain and suffocation, the memories of when she was constantly burned and choked by Koshi Mizuchi haunting her for several months.

She didn't blame Anna for the latter, though; she had known that it didn't matter to Mizuchi that the albino Strain was just a little girl, and that what he intended for her was not for him to decide since he was too selfish and cruel to have a conscience. Despite the terror that the pain had caused Amira, she didn't regret that she had been tortured in Anna's place; in her opinion, it was better that it had happened to her instead on the precious little girl as long as she could protect her from the incomprehensible cruelty of the Gold Clan and its mad scientist.

Amira was glad that the gun was already loaded, and she could use the extra bullets in case they weren't enough. She stopped just as she exited the corridor, her heart freezing in disbelief at the sight that had greeted her: Anna was in the labyrinth of plants that Amira had nearly been lost in earlier, her snow white hair, and frilly red dress illuminated by the moonlight coming in through the skylight.

Baby, what are you doing here? she wondered wildly. You're going to get hurt!

Before she could call out a warning to the little girl, she heard the unmistakable rustling of leaves, and saw Otoya Takechi emerging from behind some cultivated tomato vines that weren't in season yet, her face lighting up with a sadistic delight that reminded Amira of Koshi Mizuchi when she saw the doll like child who had come into her line of vision. She held a pair of woodsaws in her hands, and the beltbag she wore looked quite suspicious. Quickly, silently, Amira made a beeline to the right so she could circle around, and get closer to her opponent without her hearing so that once she saw her, her attention would be removed from Anna so that she would be out of the line of fire.

" Are you lost, little girl? " Otoya Takechi's voice asked with a fake sweetness that brought the vision of black spiders crawling over their struggling prey. " I'll bring you home… "

Amira stopped at an open space a few yards from the two girls, and took aim.

Don't you touch her…

Her opponent's words were followed by an evil laugh, but before she could act on her intentions, Amira fired a couple of shots at the sadistic girl, and although they didn't hit home as she had intended because Otoya Takechi had moved at the last minute, the interruption got her attention, and she saw the enraged snarl on her face as she turned to face her.

The black haired killer of Otoya Mizuchi's father, Amira Arashikage, stood ramrod straight, her eyes almost luminous, her face cold with rage, a pistol in her hand.

For a moment, the sadistic teenager felt a flash of fear as she faced the girl who had killed her father without batting an eyelash , but before any of them could make another move, chaos seemed to erupt all around them.

The glass house was suddenly flooded with lights from above and outside, accompanied by the sounds of sirens and helicopter propellers, momentarily stunning the two combatants with the unexpected disturbance.

" Anna! " Amira Arashikage called out to the little girl who had caught Otoya's attention. " Get out of here! Now! "

Much to Amira's surprise and distress, Anna only moved a few feet away, and circled around the route her black haired friend had taken so that she was standing only a few feet away from her, but was at a large distance from the girl with the evil smile.

Amira sighed at the child's stubbornness. " Alright, alright, " she consented. " But stay back, do you understand? I don't want you caught up in any more of this! "

Anna merely nodded, her ruby eyes large, and Amira turned back to her opponent, only to have another interruption.

A crashing sound from above caught the attention of the trio in the greenhouse, forcing Amira to run in Anna's direction while Otoya Takechi jumped back as shattered glass rained down, followed by a tall figure clad in blue landing smoothly amidst the shining debris before rising to his feet.

Reisi Munakata.

The Blue King glanced to his left, and saw Amira Arashikage gaping at him in disbelief while standing protectively in front of the Red Clan's princess, Anna Kushina.

" What - ?! " Amira choked out. " What are - ?! How -?! " She took a deep breath. " What the hell are you doing here?! How did you find me?! "

Munakata's lips twitched at the black haired mermaid's reaction, even as the sudden explosion interrupted their conversation before members of Scepter 4 and HOMRA entered the greenhouse that was the battlefield between two Strains. " Forgive me for the intrusion, Arashikage-kun, " he apologized, his focus moving back to Otoya Mizuchi who had re-emerged from the greenery she had hidden behind, her expression one of ominous rage. " However, this is no ordinary fight that you have been caught up in; you see, your opponent is not only a wanted serial killer, but she is also the daughter of Koshi Mizuchi, which makes her mission to kill you – and your friend behind you – personal. "

" Huh. "

That bored huff came from the girls' right, and Amira somehow wasn't surprised to see Mikoto Suoh, the Red King make a fiery entrance, surrounded by his clansmen, one of them looking like he had just come from a shopping spree because he was holding several bags in his hands.

Anna looked up at Amira, her ruby eyes asking the older girl if it was alright for her to go to her King. The black haired girl smiled gently at the precious, doll like child. " You don't need my permission, baby, " she pointed out softly. " Go on; you'll be safer with him than with me. "

Anna's eyes were sad, but showed that she understood as she ran towards her surrogate family, and Amira was relieved, even amused when she saw her take the hand of her stoically bored King.

Keep her safe, she pleaded silently.

" I'm not the only one she's after, Captain, " Amira said. " Hikaru Okamihime is being tailed by Isuke Inukai – "

" Fushimi-kun has gone after them, Arashikage-kun, " the Blue King assured her. " Your friend is in capable hands. "

The greenhouse had somehow turned into an arena, because before she knew it, she was surrounded by both Blue and Red Clansmen. A movement to her far right her attention, and she saw that Otoya Takechi – no, Otoya Mizuchi was charging towards the Blue King who had managed to erect his shield to ward off her attack, the blades of her saws clashing with the azure, glasslike barrier.

The other Blue Clansmen moved forward, their hands on their swords, only to be startled when Amira raised her pistol once again, and fired at her violet tinted haired opponent, one of the bullets catching her in the right shoulder, the other shattering the bone in her elbow, rendering her right arm almost useless.

Otoya Mizuchi was livid with rage at the interruption by her father's killer, and charged at Amira, her words an enraged yell:

" Don't get in my way, you little -! "

Your fight is with me! Amira thought as she felt her anger flood her at the attempt on the life of the man she had accepted as her King, and the little girl she considered her own as the furious mermaid launched herself at her enemy. Leave him and Anna out of this!

With that thought in mind, Amira tackled Otoya Mizuchi to the ground, both combatants grappling with each other in attempt to gain the upper hand since they were evenly matched.

Long hair – jet black, and purple tinted black - literally seemed to be flying as both girls struggled to block the strikes of the other, determined to win the fight for their own reasons, blood splattering on the cold, marble floor.

Amira Arashikage didn't hold back any of her strikes, and with good reason: if she lost, Otoya Mizuchi will have succeeded in eliminating her, and would be able to go after Anna as well as the Blue King, along with the family of the security guard that she had killed with no one able to stop her.

Both girls were on their feet now, circling each other warily, Otoya Mizuchi's face contorted in pain from her damaged arm, and sadistic anticipation, while Amira Arashikage's face had a cold, expressionless rage hardening her lovely features. Mizuchi reached into her beltbag, and drew out two pairs of wickedly sharp scissors, licking them lovingly, the sight sending shudders of chilled revulsion through those who had seen it.

Yuck, Amira thought with a shudder.

" After I'm done with you, " Mizuchi declaredgleefully. " I'm going after your baby doll, and you won't be able to stop me! "

" You'll never touch her, " Amira countered, drawing out the double bladed knife she hid in her boot, her jaw set with determination. " You'll never touch anyone again. "

They charged at the same time, Amira ducking in time to avoid one of Otoya's scissors before slashing upwards with her own weapon. She was gratified to see a long, red line open itself diagonally across the other girl's face before locking her left arm around her right arm, earning a shout in pain before she plunged her blade just under her breastbone, and drew it out, the motion followed by gushing blood. Just as Otoya Mizuchi backed away from her in shock, Amira slashed at her mercilessly, opening several bloody lines in the other girl's face before ramming her right foot into her breastbone that she felt all the way to the soles of her feet, the sound of breaking bones filling her ears.

Otoya Mizuchi collapsed onto her back, gasping like a dying fish as blood began to foam and trickle from her mouth.

Amira didn't feel any pity for the girl who had enjoyed the suffering of others as she squatted beside her. " How does it feel to have a taste of your own medicine? " she asked in a lethal tone. " You enjoyed inflicting so much pain on your previous victims, so now, it's your turn. See you in hell. "

Amira rose to her feet, and was about to turn away when she stopped, and squatted beside her again, her eyes narrowing ominously. " Oh, and by the way? " she remembered. " You said that you were going to make my baby your next victim? " Otoya answered her enemy's question with a bloody gasp. " If you want to get to her, or the Blue King, " Amira's last lines were spoken in a whisper. " Buckle up, bitch! "

She finally rose to her feet as her opponent shuddered, and went still, her eyes wide with a disbelieving rage.

Otoya Mizuchi was dead.