A/N: Hello again~ This chapter is kinda long too, although not as long as the previous one. Get ready for some ~little~ drama here...Sometimes there are fights...And not all are physical ones...Take note the phycological state most characters are in, after the missiles incident...Not that great I suppose, right?

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Chapter 4: Pretending to be

…South Korea…inside the kitchen of Frankenstein's house

"Why, why, why must you put so much spice in the food every time you cook?!"

"Oh, come on Tao. I put much less than the previous time"

"The previous time you cooked fuel for a rocket. That thing was watering my eyes from a distance!" whined Tao as he tried to pry away the big whole spice of black pepper his comrade put inside the sauce.

"I admit that it was a little over the edge-"

"A little he says…" Tao snorted.

M-21 sighed "Okay, it was bad. But this one is far better" M-21 continued while eating. He was still learning how to cook. He hadn't had to cook since M-24 took over that role. He remembered the time when he would be send to missions alone, before he was finally paired with his fallen comrade. It was only for the first few months…

"M, are you there? Hey, don't tell me you actually took my comment too seriously" Tao said as he was waving his hand in front of M-21.

"Huh? No, no…I didn't mind that, it's just that…I remembered M-24. He used to cook for us both when we were in certain missions. Otherwise we would have a takeout" he smiled at the memories. He learned to appreciate the ones he could have.

"I see. Hey, another topic. What do you think the new guy will be like? Frankenstein said he would help with security, inside information about the Union and maybe finding Sir Raizel" said Tao hopefully.

M-21 knew that hopeful tone in Tao's voice. It had something of guilt in it. He recognized the sentiment; he had it too, after all. Tao had told him, not too long after the missiles hit the Noblesse, that he felt guilt over the fact that he hadn't manage to disarm them. All M-21 could do was support him and hug him while he was breaking down in front of him. He and Takeo were the ones that tried to take Tao out of his guilt and shook him hard enough in the course of the month that had had followed, in order to prevent the worst. M-21 thought that it was ironic how he could help Tao in this kind of matter but not himself.

"Well, that is for us to see I guess. I think that it's weird that this person appeared just like that. The place where Frankenstein and the third elder are, is just a storage facility"

"Yeah…And from the coordination they send us, it seems that it isn't located near civilization. Oh, well…We just have to wait and see right M? Takeo sent a message about twenty minutes ago. They will be here in an hour or so"

"Tao, can I ask you something?" said M-21 after a lot of thinking.

"Sure, you can" tao answered while trying to chew the spicy food. In his mind he was deciding that this was the last bite for the night.

"What is it lately with you and Takeo calling me like that?"

Tao stopped for a while and tried to find the right words…or maybe the right answer.

"Well, we thought that it is about time to stop with the code-calling…you know…"

"And calling me 'M' is not code-calling?" He seemed to take this really seriously and was really focused on Tao now; something that made Tao fidget.

"Oh come on, 'M' is not a code. It's more like a nick name. Nicknames are cool. And…you are cool?" his voice was unsure and it looked like he was trying his best to find a plausible reason.

"Tao, it sounds more like a British spy code-name if nothing else" He was looking at him in frustration. It was indeed a touchy subject. "You started doing that since we didn't find anything about my identity and Takeo started calling me that recently!"

"Why are you so upset about it?"

"My code name is just something temporary we use until we find out who I am! Are you modifying it now because you believe that I may never find out who I am?!" he got up from the table and started pacing in the living room. Tao had never seen him fusing about his identity like that.

"Look that is not true" he started but the weird reaction got him lost for words. Who would have thought?

"Please! For all I know, in two months, you might start calling me Mike or something like that!" he answered in a dark sarcastic tone.

"Now you stop right there! We would never try to do that to you. We haven't given up hope. Besides it was you that said we should stop looking…-"

"What?!" he turned suddenly to Tao, looking absolutely furious. "I did that only because I want Raizel to be found. The fact that I want that, doesn't erase the fact that I want to find my true identity. I'm setting my priorities straight Tao! I do not abandon my goals!"

"Okay, okay. I'm sorry! Don't take it out on me! We just wanted to help! Or so we thought" said Tao exhausted. He got up to leave; he didn't feel good about the whole argument. He wanted to talk about it with him but he wasn't a fool. The air was far too electrified to continue arguing. 'Had we really had that in the back of our minds when we started calling him that? Did we believe that he wouldn't find his identity?'

Before he went to his room, to find relaxation in his computers and programs, he thought that he owed his comrade an honest comment.

"You know, you may be right about the identity, but the name doesn't necessarily make you; you make the name. It is you who gives worth to it and honor or destroy it. Regardless, if it bothers you so much I will tell Takeo about it. But shouldn't you try to think that...things may not come as you want them in the end? It's good to be mentally prepared"

"Prepared for what, Tao?"

"A future that may not be to your liking. We would hate to see you getting swallowed by the grief and melancholy of something that cannot be found that easily. Don't let your life and your happiness rotate around finding your name. That's your life's goal, but I don't think you should let it prevent you from actually living your life"

By now M-21 was considerably calmer but still had some to go. He was listening though. Tao saw that. 'Good' he thought; he would say more to him when he was completely calm.

"I'll be in my room" he said and left.

M-21 was still upset but he didn't know why or with whom anymore. As his blood was cooling down he was beginning to think that he had to do some thinking on the matter. He wasn't thinking lately; he was brooding. Things had to be sorted out.

…in the helicopter…only 15 minutes before landing…

"We are going to be landing soon Sara, so you better fasten your seatbelt"

"Okay" she said mechanically.

Half an hour ago she awoke and came to sit next to Takeo in the front. They didn't exchange many words, although Takeo thought that it was more because of exhaustion than lack of will. She looked skeptical while she was sitting next to him. He was checking several times to make sure there was enough space between them, just as Frankenstein had instructed.

"I like how the sky looks, even though it's a little odd. The clouds are below us" she said as she was watching outside.

"Yeah, they have come pretty low to the surface of the ground. It looks like there is fog in the town" he answered awkwardly.

It was time to call Tao and inform him.

Tao was relaxing by playing Paperboy; an old 80's arcade game that had been modified to the computer. He never understood why he liked that game so much, especially since he was quick to beat it. So he just kept beating his own record for fun. He was feeling really relaxed. Maybe he would try Pac-Man next.

The side note in the monitor appeared, showing that Takeo wanted to communicate through the radio. Tao thought this came in a bad time. He really wanted to beat the previous score.

"Well, well…There you are Santa Claus, what gift do you bring us this year?" he said as he abandoned the game.

"Tao cut it out. She is near me, she listens to you"

"Oh so she is female"

"Yes, I am" she replied dryly.

"We are landing in less than fifteen minutes. How are things there?"

"Well…they are okay I suppose. I will inform M…I will inform him that you two are already in Korea. We are waiting for you"

"Okay. Takeo out."

Tao sighed. He felt that there hasn't been enough time for the spirits to have cooled down. He covered his face with his hands to clean his mind.

"Tao"

Tao jumped in his seat. When did his friend become that silent? He took a look at him and noticed that he had his head down and his hair was falling in front of his face, covering most of it.

"Hey man, when did you-"

"Tao" he interrupted and slowly raised his head to look at his comrade- no, his family, in the eye.

"Tao, I'm sorry. I think that I overreacted when the only thing you two wanted was to make me comfortable. I know I am distant lately, and I'm stubborn and sometimes I don't notice the pit that I'm sinking into, until it's too late"

"It's okay man" said Tao as he raised himself from the chair. "I know it was a sensitive subject to say too much about"

"No. It needs to stop being a sensitive subject! I will not let it shadow my relationship with my family" he declared with a final tone. "You can call me however you want. Please don't stop calling me M. If only to keep reminding me that I can get out of the pit that I've let myself sink into. Please don't tell Takeo about my…you know, about the scene I made…"

"Oh don't worry. If nothing else you let some steam off. God knows how much more you need to let. Just give us a heads up next time so we can take you to the training room" Tao responded with a smile. "We would all like to see you relaxed again and actually moving forward in life. I haven't given up on you and never will, I'm just making sure that you don't just become 'the one who looks for his name' but someone who enjoys life despite not having found his name yet. Sir Raizel would have wanted it too"

M-21 smiled. A rare sight as it was, it was always welcome.

'We always had the past to long for; because we were nothing without it. The past is always your base, but isn't the present just as important? I have so many more things to live for. The past, the present and the future. They are all important after all' he thought and felt very lucky to have his brothers here with him. He looked Tao as he looked at him too. The stare was enough to put everything at ease.

M-21 sighed "So Tao, did Takeo inform you of the time of the landing?"

"Yeah, they will be here soon. Let's go up shall we?"

"Yes, let's go"

As they were getting up the stairs Tao let an exited noise escape from his mouth.

"Ah!"

"What happened?!" M-21 raised his eyebrow and looked at Tao with a questioning look.

"The guest is a woman!" he said like a kid announcing the release date of a new video game.

"Is that so?"

"Mhm… I just spoke to Takeo and she was listening. And then, he sent me a message with some of Frankenstein's directions. Here, read it too. But hurry, I think they are here; he probably left the chopper in the warehouse and is coming with a car"

M-21 took the cellphone from Tao. Takeo did that a lot; talk to you on the phone or in person and after a while he would send the rest with message. The weirdest thing though was the instructions. 'Not coming in physical contact' being one of them. And also 'Safest state of hers: sleeping' was a little bit alarming too; the one that took the price though was the 'Don't let your emotions be recognized by her'. Maybe Takeo was playing with them.

Suddenly he heard the door open and Takeo instructing someone to take off their shoes and wear slippers.

"Come in Sara, welcome to our home" said Takeo encouragingly.

She stepped in looking at vast house. The way a modern house was, felt weird and unknown. It wasn't familiar to her. Almost nothing of it was familiar; not the way the floor was shining, not the aroma of the place, not the over-cleaned and over-polished furniture. She turned her head, her eyes suddenly lost focus and she fell unconscious.

Luckily for Sara, she felt backwards, and that meant that Takeo got hold of her pretty fast. Tao and M-21 rushed to her as well.

"What is the matter with her?"

"She is malnourished M. She is very weak. She has been like that for God knows how long. Frankenstein told me that she was inside that storage for at least three months; sedated" Takeo explained as he was lifting her up, with minor difficulty, and heading to the room they had decided to put her in. Tao was hot on his tail and M-21 followed too.

"So, do we need to put her on saline? Actually I think Boss even has some with vitamins in it"

"Well, it would help I suppose. Can you do it, though Tao?"

"Yeah, I think I can manage. Get her to bed; I'm going to bring it"

At that moment Tao's phone vibrated and as he checked on it he saw that he had to take an important call; a call this late at night wasn't for something trivial. But still by the number it was probably one of the staff of the school calling in sick; they did that a lot this particular period. M-21 gestured at him.

"Don't worry, I'll get the saline"

"You know which they are?"

M-21 offered a dry smile accompanied by a sarcastic look.

"Please, have you forgotten where I was modified at?" And with that he went to Frankenstein's office.

Takeo threw a look to Tao, as soon as he put the girl down to her bed.

"Everything alright while I was gone?"

"Yeah…I think he was able to let some steam off"

"Huh…About time..."

"Yes, but I don't think that it was enough"

"I wouldn't have expected that either"

"Let me take this call before he comes"

"Don't worry Tao. Take your time; I will hook her with the thing" he said with a smile.

"Okay, thanks"

M-21 came after two minutes with the special saline, a stand to hold the bag and the right tools to put it in her system. For a moment Takeo halted himself, thinking about the directions he was given. M-21 though told him that the state she was in, at the moment, was very close to the 'asleep' condition. So that calmed Takeo down. He hooked her up; nothing bad happened.

The darkness was a familiar trait for her, only this time she wasn't as deep in it as before. She was in her way to waking up. She was hearing the rustling of fabric and something ticking. She smelled soap and freshness. And then her eyes stirred at the light of the windows. 'Wait, windows? The room doesn't have any…' Then all of what happened in the last three days came back to her mind and the sensation of her body came back to her and she woke up completely and stood up suddenly. Sara was aware of her surroundings now.

One of her surroundings was another person; dressed in a suit, with short black hair that strangely had a tuft of white hair. He looked friendly though, Sara decided.

"Hey, hey don't worry miss, I won't hurt you" said Tao, holding his hands up to show that he meant no harm. "You passed out as soon as you came inside. You must be really weak from lack of nutrients" he nodded to her hand that had an IV. She then noticed the IV that was attached to her right hand.

"It was easier in the right hand, the vein was more visible" the man said. But that wasn't what she was thinking. Everything right now felt more than bizarre; they felt as if it was a big joke to her.

She turned to her left, to see the young man in the eye. She was feeling his stare on her so it was better to confront him now.

"What did you give me? What is running through me right now?" she asked with a newfound decidedness. She thought it was strange that he was talking to her in English at once but then she thought that the other one with the long hair must have told him. She wasn't surprised that he knew though; she was told that it was a universal language.

"Don't worry. It's just saline. Well, it has some vitamins and minerals that you probably need. Frankenstein told us that you were undernourished; Oh! And let's not forget that you passed out as soon as you got into the house" he added quickly; that quickly, that he almost had no breath. He still managed to look cheerful.

Sara's eyes darkened and she looked skeptical. 'I did faint, didn't I? Huh…Who would have thought?' Her thoughts almost traveled her again but it was time to be present for her host.

"I see. Thank you for taking care of me. Has Frankenstein told you?" she asked hesitantly.

"Yes, yes…We know most of it…"

"Huh…I doubt it….err…What is your name?"

"Oh! I'm sorry where are my manners? My name is Tao" he said with a smile on his face and a cheerful greet. "You are Sara, right?"

Her eyes shoot up in awareness.

"How do you know?"

"Takeo…told me? You know, tall, long hair, has guns? The one that brought you here"

"Oh…yeah right, I remember now. I'm terribly sorry. I'm confused. Nice to meet you Tao" she said as she extended her left hand since her right one was busy having a saline IV in it.

But then, Sara noticed that Tao was hesitant to even lift his hand, never mind touching her own. And then she noticed that he was actually getting further away to the back of his chair. She then understood.

"Oh…Of course" she put the hand down. "Frankenstein must have warned you not to come in physical contact with me in case I do something to hurt you…in any possible way" she remembered that man's words when he announced her that she would be living with his family. It looked like the man was taking many precautions.

"Well you know…We are not sure what-"

"It's alright. I understand everything. If you are Frankenstein's family, even a little, you sure would take precautions. Trust is not coming easy; especially in situation like this" she declared. If they would keep their cards – or hands – close to their chest, then so would she. Besides she knew that she was to be met with surprises just as much as they were.

"What do you mean by saying 'even by little'?"

"I mean, dear Tao, that it shows that you guys are not blood related" she smiled to him knowingly.

"You could tell by our appearance?"

"Not only from that" She had felt Frankenstein's presence to be something much older and different than the ones he called his family. That much she could tell even without touching them. They weren't the same…kin. She knew better than that. But still, she couldn't help but notice a fragment of Frankenstein's presence in the room...coming from Tao...weird.

Tao stayed and continued looking at her. She didn't elaborate on what she said, so he let it pass. He didn't know what to talk about, but he was trying. He missed the guys. They had left way before she woke up, to go to the school. Their duties were waiting for them. He decided to stay at home today; mainly because he believed he was the most social one and would talk better with her, and he also wanted a little break from the insane bureaucracy of his headmaster duties. But now, it looked like she wouldn't talk too much about herself and he didn't want to mention her stay at the Union's labs. He knew better than to touch such a theme, that early in their meeting. He could tell her about the directions Boss had given to them, but he had a feeling that she wouldn't appreciate it. The others weren't coming until much later…

"So how many people are living here? Frankenstein didn't specify" she was looking around the room. She wanted to go and explore the whole home but she had a feeling that she would fall again.

"We lost it again"

"Damn it!"

Far away from Korea, Frankenstein was not a happy man; but then again, he rarely was these days.

To be continued...

A/N: So, we had a little bit of an argument...But what can you do? The search of Raizel is going to be a little bit slow but is going to be progressing more as the story goes...

Some more Noblesse characters are coming up next...

I'd like to thank "Peaceful and Calmness" the first one to follow this story. ^_^

AND...have a good day~