Although Ame knew that Medusa wasn't far from Death City, she didn't know exactly where she was. So, what else was she to do than summon Nuregami, the snake goddess of water, to find her? Even though Nuregami wasn't any good in a place as dry as the dessert, she could find another snake. It was a natural ability gifted to each animal of the Zodiac. All except Inuyasha. Since he betrayed Ame and the other gods, his divine abilities had lessened greatly.

"It's so hot here," Liz complained. She collapsed to her knees next to her sister. "Nure… please… water…."

"Ugh, fine," Nuregami rolled her eyes, throwing a canteen of fresh water at their feet. They devoured the water greedily. Kid sighed, thoroughly embarrassed by their behavior.

"I can't believe you two," he said. "We haven't even been going that long."

"How much farther?" Ame asked.

"I seem to have taken a wrong turn," Nuregami sighed. She pointed at a small oasis some two hundred feet away. "Up ahead."

"Shade!" the two weapons rejoiced.

"Calm down," Kid held them back. "Transform. Medusa's there; I can sense her."

"Well, if that's all you needed, I'll be going," Nuregami sighed, turning away from them.

An Old Enemy; Making Ends Meet and Treaty?

Eruka looked up from where she was sitting behind Medusa. She'd been brushing Medusa's hair, being a servant as she probably always would be now. The five Mizune sisters where all chattering excitedly from where they hid in the bushes, looking excitedly at their guests. Medusa looked up with a grin.

"It's been a long time, reaper," she greeted Kid. "I never thought I'd be seeing you here. Tell me, what brings a god of Death and a god of Life to my humble resting place?"

"It's about Arachne," Kid spoke simply. Now he remembered why he didn't like talking to Medusa. Her tone was always condescending and she was annoying. Medusa's smile vanished and she glared at him.

"What about her?" she asked. "She's dead now, so I don't see how it matters."

"Is she really dead?" Kid asked. "There have been some suspicious occurrences in Death City, and we think she has something to do with it."

"Like I said, I thought she was dead," Medusa said. "Now I'd appreciate it if you leave me alone."

"We're not finished with you," Kid snapped.

He looked up when a figure dropped in front of them. It was the werewolf, Free. He bared his fangs in an intimidating grin.

"You heard her, back off," he growled. Kid reflexively raised his weapons.

"We don't have time to fight," Kid continued. "Just let us by."

"And miss out on a good fight?" Free asked. "No way. Ever since we started laying low, I can't get a good brawl for nothing."

"What a waste," Kid muttered, lowering his weapons. "Ame, take care of him for me. I'll continue with Medusa."

"I'm on it," Ame nodded. She transformed and growled at Free.

"A she-wolf, huh?" Free asked. "I've never run into anyone like you before. What mountain did you come down from?"

"Ezofuji was my resting place," Ame replied with a growl. "And you?"

"I'm a bit of a wanderer," he replied with a grin. "Never stayed too long in a place to call it my home. Anyway, let's stop talking and get this over with."

"You're the one that wanted to fight," Ame stated as he transformed into his wolf form.

As the two of them fought, Kid continued to interrogate Medusa.

"Now give us some straight answers. Are you using Arachne's magic as your own now that she's dead?"

"Why would I do that?" Medusa demanded. "I have my own magic. Besides, Arachne's magic dissolved in a cloud. The only one that would be able to use her power would be the Demon Lord."

"What do you know about that?" Liz asked.

"Oh, please," Medusa rolled her eyes. "Asura threw the entire world into chaos, and the Demon Lord made him look like a joke. Of course I know about the Demon Lord. I don't have anything to do with him, if that's what you're implying."

"Why wouldn't you—?"

"Kid," Ame interjected. Medusa turned to look at her for the first time, all she knew of Inochigami was what little her older sister had told her about Yuki and Ikiru. She'd never seen a manifestation of life in the flesh. She tensed slightly when Ame approached her, getting uncomfortably close, before kneeling in front of her and staring her down. Medusa maintained a poker face as they studied each other.

"You revived the Kishin," Ame said.

"Yes," Medusa replied.

"I have to thank you for that," Ame said.

"Ame," Kid protested.

"If it weren't for you, I might have never defeated the Demon Lord," Ame continued with a soft smile. Medusa stared at her incredulously.

"What are you thanking me for?" she asked. Ame kept smiling and wagged her tail slightly. "What are you smiling for? I didn't do anything. Get your act together; I'm supposed to be your enemy, right?"

"Not in the slightest," Ame said. "Let's declare a truce. I doubt you have the capacity to revive the Demon Lord, why don't you make yourself known as you please and we'll take your name off of Death's list."

"Ame!" Kid protested. "Why do you always ignore me at times like this?"

"I'd enjoy that," Medusa finally smiled back in her cruel way. "And I won't cause you anymore trouble."

"Why is she sucking up?" Kid sighed. Ame returned to his side and glanced back at Medusa.

"By the way, those aren't spider threads," Medusa spoke up. "They're puppet strings. Remember the difference."

"Puppet strings?" Kid wondered.

Soul Eater

"We weren't able to find the culprit behind the attacks," Kid reported to his father that evening. "All we know is that Medusa has nothing to do with it."

"I see," Lord Death sighed. "Well, you two tried your best! All we can do is keep searching."

Although Kid was beginning to worry about these mysterious occurrences, Ame continued her days as if nothing had ever happened. She had to put on a brave face for the public. Just as Lord Death had a school to keep, Ame had worshippers to maintain. She always tried to make everyone as happy as possible so that one day they may return the favor. Just the civilians Death City and a small rural village in Japan had been enough to just get her through the battle with Ninetails.

Nagi found her in the quieter half of the residential area of the city. The neighborhood was composed of small one-story cottages and unkempt laws, dogs barking and cats resting on the fence posts. It was homey, and rather inviting compared to the rest of the morbid city. Ame was sitting on the porch of one of the homes, sitting next to a woman drinking lemonade.

"Thank you for your help, Ame-chan," she said, folding her hands to cradle her pregnant belly. "It's just since my husband died, I've been having some problems getting along on my own. And I'll be having a baby soon, so that only adds to my stress."

"I'm glad I could help, Lily," Ame said with one of her toothy smiles. "I just want to help."

"Thank you for your time," Lily nodded. Ame looked up as Nagi approached them.

"Ame, are you ready to come home?" he asked, averting his eyes from the two of them. "Kid wanted to talk to you about something."

"Don't be so rude, Nagi," Ame smirked, referring to his obvious aversion to kids and pregnant women. Ame was only teasing him, but Lily laughed.

"Do you want to touch it?" she asked quietly, nodding to her stomach. Nagi was blushing an unhealthy crimson color, but he tried not to be rude and accepted her offer. He pressed his palm timidly to the center of her stomach and jerked away immediately.

"Gross, it moved!"

Lily laughed again and Ame got to her feet. She nodded to Lily and began her walk home. Nagi followed with his head down.

"You should really work on that," Ame spoke up once they were out of earshot. "What if Liz wants to have kids someday?"

"She won't," Nagi shrugged. "I know it. I mean, she's never been that good at taking care of herself, so…"

"Nagi," Ame scolded.

"I mean, that's what she always tells me," Nagi shrugged and kept walking. Ame half-smirked and continued home without another word.

Dinner was prepared. They ate. They talked. Kid wanted to confer with Ame about whether or not she saw odd things in the residential areas. It wasn't until after dinner that Kid got a call from Lord Death about an attack. It wasn't a Kishin attack; the souls of the victims were left behind. It was as if the attacker only wanted the bodies. It was very close to Gallows, and that was the only reason Lord Death wanted Kid and Ame to examine the crime scene personally that night.

"It should be close," Kid warned Ame, turning a corner. They could see the flashing light s of police cars and some yellow tape held up around the entrance of an alleyway.

"I can smell the blood," Ame nodded. Kid nodded to one of the policemen and they were let through. The two of them crossed under the tape and entered the alleyway. Ame balked at the sight.

Blood everywhere. It was a woman. Not any woman; it was Lily! Her face was twisted in pain and terror, dry streams of old tears staining her face. Her stomach was ripped open, her guts and… what was left of… it… strewn across the cold ground. Ame could no longer feel anything. She couldn't move, and soon, everything went black.

"Ame!" Kid caught the girl by the shoulders before she hit the ground.

"I knew this crime scene wasn't for children," he heard one of the policemen say.

"I thought that the DWMA would send better VIPs to do their work," another man agreed.

Kid tried not to let their words bother him. Ame was stronger than this.

I thought they would have sent better VIPs for their work…

You're stronger than this, I know it.

… Mei-mei…

Wake up…

Are you awake yet?

"Are you awake yet?"

Ame's eyes flickered open as she finally regained consciousness. She was in her own bed, and Kid was standing next to her. He'd been checking on her as he had every so often the night before. He put a hand on her face uncertainly.

"I'm fine," she said, taking his hand in both of hers. "I was just shocked."

"I'm sorry," Kid apologized. "I didn't know what happened."

"Don't apologize," Ame said quietly. "At least, this has given me the resolve to truly find who's doing this."

"About that… Ame…" Kid hesitated. "Azusa located most of the missing people. I don't think you should come with us."

"What do you mean?" Ame demanded.

"You should stay here, and I'll take care of it," Kid explained. "I just… after what we saw last night, I don't want you to get hurt."

"I won't, I'll be fine," Ame said. "It doesn't matter what you say; I'm coming with you."

"But Ame—"

"We'll leave soon," Ame said. Kid didn't argue with her; he knew he was being ridiculous. He just had a bad feeling about this whole thing.

Hello again. Between watching Ginga Densetsu Weed and playing The Last of Us and Bleach Soul Resurrection, I hardly find the time or energy to type these in-betweeners ^^;