Disclaimer: I do not own this. Spiral: The Bonds Of Reasoning is the property of Kyo Shirodaira and Eita Mizuno. The only ownership I claim is for this story and the OCs involved.

A/N: Hey all,

Thanks for checking out this latest chapter of Who Knows What Fate May Hold For You. I didn't think I would, but I managed to get it edited in time to publish on the deadline day. I hope you all enjoy it.

I know I've mentioned this in a previous chapter, but I'm going to put it here again in case it was missed before. To better communicate with my readers I will be writing updates on my profile and using that to let you know what's going on with publication and if chapters will be late or if there are issues with the site preventing me from updating. I will be using that to keep you all informed so please be checking that for new messages. That's all I have to say on that so, without further ado, please enjoy Chapter 25 of Who Knows What Fate May Hold For You and I will see you again next month. If you feel like it, drop me a review. I'd love your feedback or critiques.

Thanks for your continued support,

Spiral of Destiny

Eyes sat alone in his apartment as the day slowly gave over into night. He had met with the Blade Children in the morning, but not much had been achieved beyond the placement of Hiroshume among Rio's group and the private instruction for Kisame to keep an eye on the Hacker. Kanone had been surprisingly quiet during the entire interaction and Kisame hadn't appeared to want much to do with the gathering either. Ultimately the Blade Children had parted ways with nothing being resolved and very little in the way of progress being made.

Eyes now sat at a small desk in the bedroom of his apartment. His hands rested idly on the desktop, an unfinished composition lying beneath them. His gaze was focused on the wall behind the desk, as the room lacked any windows. Sighing, he leaned back in the chair, reclining his head so he was facing the ceiling and closed his eyes. Overwhelming fatigue had settled over his body. The events of the past few days, coupled with the feelings of betrayal from Kanone and Hiroshume, the latest attack, and the unsolved mystery of the new transfer student all weighed on Eyes' mind. Add on the isolation he felt due to his own rejection of Kanone, his new-found distrust of Kisame, plus his concern for Hiroshume's well-being moving forward, and Eyes felt the weight of the Blade Children's problems to be suffocating him.

He sighed again, lifting his head and placing the pen on the desktop as he slowly rose to his feet. Despite his body's protests, he bypassed the bed and re-entered into the main room of his apartment. Closing the bedroom door behind him, he leaned back against it momentarily, looking over the large empty space that stretched out before him. His gaze lingered on the massive piano that stood in the center of the room, eclipsing the waning sun from his view and casting an ominous shadow across the length of the floor. Eyes smiled as he observed it.

Pushing off the door, he made his way over to the great instrument, running his hand affectionately over the shiny surface of it's lid. It stood closed now, out of use. Eyes lingered a moment, his fingertips resting feather-light on the black surface before he removed his hand and slowly sunk to the floor. Leaning back against the instruments front leg, he raised his arms to his torso. One hand rested tightly against the wound that was still fresh on his side. The other lay heavily over the left side of his chest. Beneath his hand, just shy of his heart, the narrow impression that marked his skin ached. This ache had been present off and on for the past year. Although it had faded considerably from the time he had received the scar, the pain was still a clear reminder of what his closest companion was capable of. Now that he had essentially stabbed Eyes in the back, the pain from the old wound seemed especially sharp.

Clenching his jaw, Eyes added pressure to both wounds, trying to block the physical pain from his side and the emotional pain from his scar.

"Kanone…" Eyes turned his gaze skyward, looking through the glass ceiling at the dark heavens surrounded by the fading pink and orange of the final rays of daylight. The sky seemed so quiet; so vast; so peaceful. The Blade Children had always been told they should return to the darkness they came from, but truthfully, Eyes didn't necessarily hate the darkness. The dark was filled with so much unknown, but it was also filled with so much possibility. What lay behind it? What was concealed within it? The Blade Children existed in that darkness. But they were still alive, weren't they? They were still moving forward, opposing fate in their own fight to validate their existence somewhere beyond that unknown. Kanone was afraid of it. He feared the unknown; hated the uncertainty it presented. Eyes knew that. Many of the Blade Children feared the darkness. Some, like Kousuke, coped by trying to pretend that they were as dark as the unknown that surrounded them. Others, like Ryoko, denied its existence and tried to live a life of someone unaffected by the terror. Still others, like Rio and himself, chose to believe that there was a way out. Whether it was through the help of someone else or by their own strength, they were convinced there was a way out.

Eyes dropped his gaze from the night sky as a spasm of pain shot through his side. His breathing hitched as his focus shifted to the source of the discomfort. As his thoughts had turned more negative, he had unconsciously tightened his grip on his wound. The resulting pain was what had now grabbed his attention. Sighing, Eyes let his hand fall limp and pulled it back into his lap and raising his legs up so his knees pointed toward the underside of the piano.

"Things were far easier before." His words were spoken aloud to no one. A part of him regretted leaving the music world to come back to fight for his life alongside his fellow Blade Children. He also couldn't deny that deep down the upcoming fight terrified him. Though he did his best to not dwell on it, he could never completely put the thought out of his mind that there was a very real chance that not all of them would make it out alive. While they had fighters like Kanone and Kisame, there was only so much the two of them could do. They were only human. How many "Hunters" would they be up against. What sort of weapons and tactics would be turned on them? The unknowns were overwhelming, pressing down on Eyes as he fought to try and find a way to prevent any of the Blade Children from dying.

But what weighed most heavily on Eyes mind was the divide that seemed to exist between the Blade Children now. When they were younger the roles were rather clear. Kanone was in charge because he was the strongest. Everyone listened to Eyes because he was so close with Kanone and was able to keep a level head. Kisame was reliable and Rio could be independent because she was intelligent. Kousuke needed more guidance, but he was useful for dispatching people who got in the Blade Children's way and Ryoko was the one that kept them all grounded and from going too far. But now things were different. Rio, Kousuke, and Ryoko had been together for so long that they seemed to operate as a separate unit from the rest of the Blade Children. Kanone and Kisame did the same. Although they had not spent as much time together in recent years as Rio and the others, their similarities to one another maintained the bond between them. Eyes, however, had left. He had gone to pursue his own future without them and while they still accepted him back to his former role when he decided to return, the connection he had previously had with the rest no longer existed. Secrets were kept within the different groups and actions were taken behind one anothers' backs. The main reason the Blade Children had stayed alive as long as they had was because they were willing to share information with one another. But now it seemed that there were more secrets than truths.

Eyes felt so lost. Kanone used to keep him informed of everything going on with the Blade Children and the "Hunter" situation surrounding them. Eyes wouldn't even be in Japan if it hadn't been for Kanone and his warnings. Yet now it seemed as though a conspiracy had formed that only the two "Guns" were part of and the rest of the Blade Children were left on the sidelines. The two older teens humored Eyes, but they certainly didn't appear to need him. Even Rio and the others had seemed to be pushed to the side since everyone had come back together. Though Eyes took partial responsibility for it, communication had all but dissolved between himself and Kanone and he felt at a loss without the older teen to guide him.

Eyes dropped his head onto his chest, his fatigue tempting him to close his eyes. He kept them open. Why did Kanone have to lie to him? He had asked them all not to involve Hiroshume and Kanone had looked him in the eye and agreed, all while going behind his back for whatever he and Kisame felt the hacker could provide them. Eye had thought that Kanone had learned his lesson. Even after everything that had happened during the past year Eyes had never held the German's actions against him and had accepted him back as a friend without a single judgment. He had done everything he could to show Kanone that he had forgiven him. Yet Kanone took that forgiveness and stabbed him again with it.

He knew that he was likely making a bigger deal out of Kanone's actions than what was called for, but the fact that Kanone had lied to him after all that had happened hurt Eyes more than he was willing to admit. After everything Eyes had stifled in order to be able to accept Kanone back with open arms, to see the green eyed teen betray his trust without the slightest hesitation or remorse made Eyes wonder why he had gone through so much for Kanone. He still wouldn't accept any of them. He wouldn't let them in, and the fact that Kisame, not Eyes, was the only exception, left a cold feeling at Eyes' core.

The pianist sighed, giving up and rising to his feet. He didn't feel like practicing that night and he was too exhausted to entertain such depressing thoughts any longer. Regardless of the reasons behind it, Kanone had made his choice in terms of the Blade Children and Eyes had to accept it. Somehow, he would need to force his mind to let go of the feelings of hurt and betrayal and move on for the sake of the others. Kanone had changed. They all had after what the German teen had done …and it was anyones guess if their relationship would ever be the same as it was before.

With a final glance back at the piano silhouetted by the moon, Eyes turned and returned to his bedroom for some much needed sleep.

OOoOoOo

The following day was uncharacteristically cold. Though still a few days shy of October, the early morning sky was filled with the gentle descent of fine snowflakes falling to rest on the heads of the students making their way toward Tsukiomi Academy.

As he walked, Asura pulled the hood of his jacket farther over his forehead and tightened his grip around its collar. While he usually loathed having to attend Tsukiomi, today he was looking forward to spending the day at school. What little heat his apartment normal managed to create had failed the previous night, leaving the interior colder than the air outside the too thin walls. Asura had been up most of the night as a result and was more than ready to spend the day somewhere warm.

Nearing the campus, he chanced a glance around himself. He spotted Izo walking a few feet ahead and watched him for a few moments, perplexed. Since coming to Japan the gray eyed teen had never seen Izo alone. Yet here he was walking by himself, surrounded by students yet clearly separate from them. Looking around, it was apparent that none of his acquaintances were anywhere nearby.

"That's odd." He mused, tucking his chin lower into the collar of his coat as a gust of wind pounded into him from behind.

He watched Eyes until they reached the front gates and was surprised to find his usual companions still absent. Looking around, he spotted three of them approaching the school from the opposite direction and another farther ahead on the school grounds. Curious, he pulled away from the flow of students and waited, watching to see if any of these individuals would come together. A frown crossed his face. One by one the various killers passed by each other. Yet unlike most days only a courteous nod was exchanged. The entire display was extremely strange and Asura didn't know quite what to make of it.

Shrugging, he gave up watching and made his way quickly into the school. As he removed his coat and shoes at the lockers, he chanced to look around again, searching through the students for one of his targets of interest. As his gaze fell on the silver hair of Eyes once more a shiver made its way up his spine and his reflexes went on high alert in expectation of an attack.

"You're doing it again." The voice sounded so close to his ear that he jumped in surprise, spinning around to face his possible assailant. Kanone stood a few feet behind him, straightening up from where he had leaned forward to speak to Asura.

"What am I doing?" Asura challenged, watching Kanone with reservation.

"Why don't you just talk to him if you're so curious?"

"Huh?"

"Izo." Asura regarded Kanone critically.

"I have no need to speak to him."

"Then why do you keep following him around and watching him from a distance?" Kanone's tone and features were light and friendly, but there was a challenging look in his eyes that Asura felt all too clearly.

"Am I not allowed to observe my fellow classmates?" His tone was hostile, rebuking the older teen's accusations. Kanone's expression didn't change.

"Of course you are. But it gets to be creepy when you always watch and never make an effort to speak with them."

"I already told you I don't care to interact with people."

"You just need the right opportunity."

"I'm sure that's not…"

"Nonsense." Kanone cut him off, placing his hand on Asura's shoulder and pushing him forward so they could leave the entryway. "Kisame and I said we'd help set up a meeting for you and your classmates and we will." He forced Asura back in front of him as the younger teen tried to pull away from his grasp.

"That's not necessary. I don't want…"

"Clearly that's not the case. A person like you only watches others because they want to know more about them. But talking face to face is a much more efficient way of gaining such information than lurking on the outside." Asura grit his teeth, looking back over his shoulder at the German teen. Kanone's very presence irritated him.

"Will you let me finish a sentence?" He jerked away and this time Kanone let him escape. He looked at him curiously as Asura turned around to face him.

"My apologies." Kanone offered, a genuine apologetic smile on his face. Asura surveyed him for a moment, guarded. He couldn't figure out whether Kanone was unintelligent or if he just came across that way. The teen standing before him may be a killer, but at the moment he didn't seem like someone Asura would be unable to handle. It didn't make sense. Asura sighed.

"Honestly, I'd think your hanging around Yaiba-san would be more cause for concern than my watching him, given your record." Kanone's smile faltered slightly.

"So that story is still circulating, is it?" Asura watched him. He didn't reply. In a moment the smile was brought back forcefully, his eyes closed innocently. "I've made some mistakes in the past. But those who weren't here at that time have seemed more willing to give me a chance." He paused, giving Asura time to read him. "I'm just trying to give you the same opportunity."

"To accept you?" Asura asked, confused. Kanone shook his head.

"To be accepted." Asura was taken back by this comment and he stood staring at Kanone, unsure about what to say. Kanone watched him patiently, the gentle smile back on his face once more.

"I find it hard to believe that people were willing to forgive and forget what you did so easily." Asura spoke carefully, gauging Kanone's reaction as he turned the conversation back onto the older teen. He had heard the story of Kanone's attack on the campus the previous year from an older student and was mildly curious about the details. Kanone's body language didn't change.

"Many weren't. But those that did were enough." Silence fell between them, Asura trying to guess Kanone's game and Kanone simply observing the effort.

"I have no desire to gain acceptance from the likes of you." The comment was harsh, but Asura wanted to see how the green-eyed teen would respond.

"But you are interested in being accepted by the others. You wouldn't be stalking them otherwise."

"I'm not stalking them!" Asura snapped, irritated that Kanone had so easily brought the conversation back around to its original topic.

"Then stop lurking and actually talk to them for a change. I guarantee it's infinitely more entertaining than standing on the sidelines." Asura squeezed the bridge of his nose in exasperation, his eyes shut tightly. His attention was pulled back to the situation at hand as the chime of bell sounded.

"I have to get to class." He turned quickly and hurried down the hall. He cringed at the words that followed him.

"We'll finish this another time them, Noragami-kun."

"Not if I can help it." He mumbled under his breath as he continued to hurry down the hall.

OOoOoOoOo

It was late afternoon before Kanone crossed paths with any of the other Blade Children. Rio and the others appeared to be focused on something they weren't ready to include him in and seemed intent on involving Hiroshume as well. Kanone trusted Rio and so didn't make an effort to interrupt. Eyes was also keeping his distance. Though the open hostility of the previous day was no longer distinctly apparent, there was still a coldness to the pianist so Kanone decided to give him his space. Having grown up alongside Eyes, the German teen was quite skilled at recognizing when the performer would benefit from company and when it was best to simply leave him alone.

However, with the advent of the new day Kisame seemed to be willing to talk to him normally once more. His point had been made during their previous conversation and Kisame seemed perfectly content to put it behind them. His tone was friendly when he stopped to speak with the green-eyed Blade Child during the short break following their latest class.

"You look rather thoughtful." Kanone glanced over his shoulder at the sound of Kisame's voice, smiling lightly at the familiarity in the teen's tone.

"So you're speaking to me again?" He questioned, earning himself a smirk.

"I always was. You were the one being moody yesterday." Kanone smiled wanly.

"I suppose so." Kisame shook his head at his morose companion and came to stand near him.

"So what's on your mind?" He questioned, returning to his original inquiry. Kanone's expression calmed and he looked out into the hallway as he spoke.

"Simply considering what to do with Noragami."

"Why are you concerned with him all of a sudden?" The smirk was easily heard in Kisame's tone, earning a thoughtful smile from his companion.

"I caught him watching Eyes again this morning." He heard Kisame scoff.

"So he didn't take the hint last time, then?" Kisame made a feeble attempt to hide his amusement, causing Kanone to chuckle. "Well, we're just going to have to make good on our invitation to meet the others then, aren't we? Give him what he's asking for." The green eyed teen nodded.

"We need to handle this carefully, though." His tone was serious.

"Obviously." Kisame agreed. "But it's better to have someone like him nearby so we can keep an eye on him rather than have him watching us when our backs are turned."

"His past makes that even more important." Kanone added. A nod was given in agreement.

"Yeah. We can't rule him out as a "Hunter" yet. Given his past it's certainly a possibility."

"Still, at school we can conduct things more freely. If he is a "Hunter" then we can study him without giving him an opportunity to do anything."

"That's certainly an advantage. Still, whatever we intend to do should be accomplished sooner rather than later. We don't need him learning about us while we remain unaware."

"Then we'd best set things in motion." Kisame's tone was thick with amusement. The feeling was reflected in Kanone's eyes. "I'll fill everyone in. You just keep an eye on our target. We'll do this little meeting today after classes are out." Kanone nodded in agreement, grateful that Kisame was willing to alert the rest of the Blade Children to the situation. "We'll corner him by the lockers." The German teen smiled.

"Alright. I'll make sure he's where we need him in time for the meeting." Kisame smirked, turning to walk back down the hall.

"See you then.

OOoOoOoOo

Asura found his luck to be growing worse and worse as the day went on. First he had been targeted by Kanone in the morning, then Kisame had cornered him in between classes. He had noted that both Yaiba and Asazuki were watching him closely during class and seemed to catch him whenever he chanced a glance in their direction. Now, as he exited his last class of the day he found Kanone once again waiting for him. He groaned internally and turned to walk in the opposite direction in hopes that Kanone's presence was simply a coincidence. His hopes died as he heard footsteps fall into step with his own. Sighing heavily he stopped and whirled around to face the older man.

"What do you want?" Kanone didn't appear phased.

"We didn't get a chance to finish talking this morning." He offered.

"I have no desire to continue that conversation." Asura turned and started walking again, gritting his teeth as he heard the older teen follow him.

"That's quite unfortunate. Since this morning it's become far more relevant."

"Why?" Asura paused and glanced back at his pursuer. He immediately regretted the action as Kanone slipped alongside him and placed his arm around his shoulders. He felt himself pushed forward as the older teen continued walking. Kanone cast him a friendly smile.

"You'll see."